^SUf  PRINCETON,  N.  J.  *# 


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"•i£n2°*"<&.lZ?-l*U 


The  New  Horoscope  of  Missions 


The  New  Horoscope 
of  Missions 


x 


By  JAMES  S.  DENNIS,  D.  D. 

Author  of  "  Christian  Missions  and  Social 
Progress"  "  Centennial  Survey  of  Foreign  Mis- 
sions" and  "Foreign  Missions  After  a  Century" 


New  York         Chicago         Toronto 

Fleming  H.   Revell    Company 
London        and        Edinburgh 


Copyright,  1908,  by 
FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  80  Wabash  Avenue 
Toronto:  25  Richmond  Street,  W. 
London:  21  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:      100    Princes    Street 


The  John  H.  Converse  Lectures  on  Missions 

Being  the  First  Course  o?i  that  Foun- 
dation, delivered  at  the  McCormick 
Theological    Seminary,    Chicago, 
Illinois,    November,  1907. 


To  the  Reverend 
James  G.  K.  McClure,  D.D.,  LL.  £>., 

President  of  the  McCormick  Theological 
Seminary >,  this  volume  is  inscribed  as  a  trib- 
ute of  high   esteem   and  sincere  friendship. 


PREFACE 

THE  immense  significance  of  the  mis- 
sionary enterprise  not  only  as  a  re- 
ligious ministry  to  mankind,  but  as 
a  fruitful  source  of  beneficent  helpfulness  to 
the  world,  is  claiming  the  attention  of  the 
Church  and  the  general  public  as  never  be- 
fore in  Christian  history.  The  cause  of  mis- 
sions seems  to  be  finding  itself  anew  in  the 
hearts  of  Christ's  followers,  and  to  be  invok- 
ing a  sane  and  intelligent  appreciation  on 
the  part  of  the  universal  Church,  to  an  extent 
which  justifies  a  well  founded  assurance  of 
the  coming  expansion  of  Christendom  to 
world-wide  proportions. 

In  the  lectures  which  form  the  subject 
matter  of  this  volume  an  attempt  has  been 
made  to  summarize  from  a  missionary  point 
of  view  the  significance  of  the  new  era  which 
has  come  with  such  startling  suddenness  in 
the  contemporary  history  of  nations  long 
9 


IO  PREFACE 

regarded  as  non-progressive  and  negligible. 
There  is  a  mingling  of  promise  and  portent 
in  the  present  outlook,  and  especially  there  is 
a  call  to  the  Christian  Church  the  historic  im- 
port of  which  has  probably  never  been  sur- 
passed in  any  age  of  human  progress. 

The  "  New  Horoscope,"  if  read  aright, 
may  be  regarded  as  portraying  an  enlarged 
missionary  outlook,  manifested  in  the  awak- 
ening world-consciousness  of  the  Christian 
Churches,  and  the  providential  significance 
of  the  opportunity  abroad.  It  may  be  inter- 
preted as  voicing  the  claims  of  the  universal 
kingdom  of  God  in  this  critical  hour  of  its 
history,  and  as  pointing  to  the  signs  of  a 
larger  loyalty  to  the  comprehensive  aim  of 
the  Gospel,  to  a  deeper  consciousness  of 
power  which  has  come  to  the  Church  in  its 
cosmopolitan  environment,  and  to  the  irre- 
sistible evidence  which  we  have  in  our  present 
day  that  He  is  with  us  "alway,  even  unto 
the  end  of  the  world."  The  moral  uplift 
which  missions  are  bringing  to  the  nations, 
their  value  as  a  racial  asset  in  the  progress 
of  mankind,  their  efficacy  in  hastening  that 


PREFACE  II 

reign  of  righteousness — individual,  social, 
and  national, — for  which  the  good  of  all  ages 
have  prayed  and  toiled,  and  the  significant 
impulse  to  unity  which  they  are  giving,  may 
all  be  included  as  clearly  written  in  the 
scroll  of  destiny  which  the  missionary  prog- 
ress of  the  twentieth  century  is  swiftly  un- 
folding before  the  vision  of  Christian  faith 
and  hope. 

The  author  has  ventured  to  include  as  an 
appendix  an  address  delivered  at  the  Parlia- 
ment of  Religions,  on  "The  Message  of 
Christianity  to  Other  Religions/'  since  it 
deals  with  a  theme  which  is  of  permanent 
missionary  interest,  and  toward  which  many 
thoughtful  minds,  in  our  day,  are  turning  in 
a  spirit  of  wistful  inquiry. 


CONTENTS 

LECTUKE  I 
A  New  World- Consciousness         .        .      15 

LECTUKE  II 

Strategic  Aspects  of  the  Missionary 

Outlook 57 

LECTURE  III 
A  New  Cloud  of  Witnesses    .  .    103 

LECTURE  IV 

Fresh  Annals  of  the  Kingdom      .        .    155 

APPENDIX 

The  Message  of  Christianity  to  Other    205 
Religions 


Index 


233 


13 


LECTURE    I 
A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS 


The  Christian  Church  is  slowly  coming  to  its  right  mind. 
For  proof,  we  note  how  hostility  has  effervesced  in  suspicion, 
and  suspicion  has  changed  to  indifference,  and  indifference  has 
become  interest,  and  interest  has  leaped  into  loyalty,  and, 
finally,  loyalty  has  been  transformed  into  a  notable  pride  in  the 
fruits  of  the  toil  of  a  singular  type  of  man.  We  have  known 
too  little  of  him.  We  ought  to  know  vastly  more  of  him  and 
his  works.  This  man  is  unique  among  men.  He  swings  down 
the  centuries  with  a  free  and  powerful  stride.  His  right  to  the 
path  he  has  not  allowed  any  one  long  to  dispute.  He  claims 
to  have  but  one  business,  and  to  breathe  but  one  consuming 
passion.  He  is  a  messenger  of  the  King  of  kings,  and  has  his 
eye  on  the  uttermost  shores  of  earth. 

The  missionary  has  always  had  his  eye  on  the  nations  of  the 
future.  He  has  never  failed  to  divine  the  regnant  qualities 
that  lie  latent  in  certain  races.  He  must  needs  work  for  the 
distant  goal  of  the  kingdom  through  those  peoples,  who,  by 
reason  of  their  rapid  growth,  their  instinct  for  expansion,  their 
industrial  supremacy,  and  their  masterful  ability  in  government, 
and  the  long  call  of  God,  are  to  control  the  next  half  hundred 
and  the  next  half  thousand  years.  He  is  after  the  masters  of 
men,  to  bring  them  to  the  Master  of  all. 

We  dare  not  get  away  from  this  view  of  the  world-move- 
ment. The  missionary  is  in  line  with  the  thought  of  a  universal 
Gospel.  He  links  hands  with  the  Master  in  His  closing  words 
in  St.  Matthew's  Gospel ;  he  grasps  the  hand  of  St.  Paul  in 
Athens ;  he  echoes  St.  Peter's  hope  of  the  new  world  in  which 
dwelleth  "  righteousness  ";  he  anoints  his  eyes  with  the  apocalyp- 
tic splendours  of  Revelation  :  "  The  kingdoms  of  this  world 
are  become  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  of  His  Christ." 
— Prof.  Richard  T.  Stevenson ,  Ph.  D. 


LECTURE  I 

A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS 

THE  missionary  ideal  of  Christianity- 
is  impressive  in  its  simplicity,  and 
almost  startling  in  its  grandeur.  Its 
aim  is  to  win  the  world  for  Christ.  Nothing 
less  than  this  will  satisfy  the  heart  of  our 
Lord,  or  be  accepted  as  an  adequate  dis- 
charge of  His  great  commission.  It  be- 
comes, therefore,  the  plain  duty  of  the 
Church  to  aim  at  world  conquest.  It  is  her 
privilege,  as  well  as  her  inspiration,  to 
cherish  the  ideal  of  universal  dominion,  to 
cultivate  a  certain  world-consciousness  as  a 
spiritual  atmosphere  in  which  she  can  dream 
and  hope  and  serve.  This  can  always  be 
done  without  any  disloyalty  to  the  claims  of 
parochial  duty,  or  the  exactions  of  a  local 
consciousness.  The  Church  must  never  fail 
to  discharge  faithfully  the  obligations  of  her 
17 


18       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

immediate  environment,  but  at  the  same  time 
her  sympathies  should  be  world-wide,  and 
the  goal  of  her  destiny  should  be  nothing 
less  than  world  victory.  The  statement  that 
the  Church  belongs  to  all  ages  would  hardly 
be  questioned.  Have  we  not  quite  as  good 
reason  to  regard  this  age-long  institution  as 
belonging  to  all  races  and  all  lands  ?  Her 
home  is  in  the  Christian  hearts  of  all  the 
centuries,  and,  for  substantially  the  same  rea- 
son, her  native  air  is  the  encircling  atmos- 
phere of  the  whole  planet. 

The  deeper,  larger,  nobler  consciousness 
of  Christian  discipleship  can  never  be  con- 
tent with  narrow  or  provincial  limitations, 
and  this  for  very  much  the  same  reason  that 
national  citizenship  can  never  be  bounded 
by  a  state  line,  or  confined  within  county  or 
municipal  limits.  Patriotic  citizenship  de- 
mands a  consciousness  which  reaches  to  the 
utmost  boundary  line.  Christian  disciple- 
ship, if  true  to  its  higher  significance,  cher- 
ishes a  world-consciousness  as  broad  as  hu- 
manity, and  as  far-reaching  as  the  love  of 
Christ. 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS  1 9 

The  sense  in  which  I  shall  use  the  expres- 
sion world-consciousness  in  this  lecture  may 
need  further  explanation.  In  its  more  gen- 
eral and  secular  aspects  it  cannot  be  regarded 
as  a  new  experience  in  human  history.  Great 
conquerors  have  often  felt  the  thrill  of  it,  and, 
fascinated  by  its  allurements,  have  followed 
hard  after  the  prizes  of  militant  ambition. 
Great  empires  have  caught  the  inspiration  of 
it,  and  have  nourished  those  ideals  of  destiny 
to  which  it  has  given  birth.  Great  states- 
men have  yielded  to  its  sway,  and  under  its 
impulse  have  outlined  their  imperial  pro- 
grammes. In  the  projected  Holy  Roman 
Empire  of  the  Middle  Ages  we  have  an  illus- 
tration of  the  blending  of  political  and  eccle- 
siastical ideals  of  universal  rule  under  sup- 
posed theocratic  auspices.  In  modern  times, 
however,  the  development  of  national  con- 
solidation and  colonial  expansion,  which  is 
represented  in  the  so-called  Great  Powers  of 
Christendom,  has  checked  somewhat  the 
ambitious  suggestions  of  imperial  aspiration. 
This  balance  of  rival  nationalities  has  there- 
fore proved  a  quieting  influence  to  other- 


20       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

wise  aggressive  programmes  of  all-inclusive 
expansion. 

Happily,  this  colonial  relationship,  with  the 
measure  of  world-consciousness  which  it  im- 
plies, has  been  in  many  instances,  although 
with  some  dark  and  dismal  exceptions,  an 
undoubted  benefit  to  backward  and  unde- 
veloped races.  It  has  brought  to  many  dis- 
turbed portions  of  the  earth  the  boon  of 
orderly  government;  it  has  introduced  ad- 
ministrative training;  it  has  banished  de- 
generate and  cruel  customs  ;  it  has  intro- 
duced educational  facilities,  modern  methods 
of  transit  and  communication,  and  has  es- 
tablished valuable  philanthropic  agencies.  It 
has,  to  be  sure,  in  some  respects  proved 
disastrous  to  native  industries;  yet  at  the 
same  time  it  has  opened  new  and  wide  com- 
mercial doors,  and  created  a  demand  for 
industrial  employment  far  more  remunerative 
and  expansive  than  the  old  lines  of  toil  could 
ever  promise.  This  impulse  of  colonial  ex- 
pansion, including  as  it  does  the  necessity 
of  race  contact,  is  regarded  by  Mr.  James 
Bryce  as  involving  some  of  the  most  momen- 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS  21 

tous  questions  of  our  times,  and  in  his  Romanes 
Lecture  of  1902,  on  "  The  Relations  of  the 
Advanced  and  the  Backward  Races  of  Man- 
kind," he  deals  with  it  with  statesmanlike 
insight  and  humane  sympathy. 

There  are,  however,  certain  aspects  of 
modern  world-consciousness  which  are  more 
germane  to  our  subject  than  any  which  are 
identified  with  either  politics  or  commerce, 
and  which  cannot  be  classed  with  schemes 
of  colonial  expansion  or  military  conquest. 
I  mean  that  perspective  of  the  world  outlook 
which  may  be  described  as  the  growth  of  a 
spirit  of  universal  brotherhood,  the  increase 
of  a  tendency  to  racial  rapprochement,  the 
awakening  of  a  sympathetic  interest  in  the 
social  betterment  of  alien  and  distant  peoples, 
and  the  cultivation  of  friendly  relations  be- 
tween nations,  when  there  appears  to  be  little 
else  than  a  common  humanity  to  cement  the 
tie.  We  may  include  also  the  better  mutual 
understanding  of  races  hardly  acquainted 
with  each  other  a  few  generations  ago,  the 
intellectual  and  scholarly  rapport  which  has 
resulted  from  research  and  intercourse,  and 


22       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

the  mutual  enlightenment  which  has  followed 
upon  travel  and  observation.  Then,  there 
are  the  more  or  less  official  visits  of  high 
functionaries,  government  commissions,  or  pri- 
vate parties,  arranged  for  the  express  purpose 
of  making  a  serious  study  of  the  institutions 
and  the  social  and  industrial  life  of  other 
nations.  These  may  all  be  considered  as  as- 
pects of  a  world-consciousness  which  is 
based,  to  a  noticeable  extent,  upon  the  con- 
viction that  as  nations  and  races  we  are 
members  one  of  another.  The  oneness  of 
Christians  in  Christ,  and  in  each  other  as 
members  of  Christ's  body,  while  it  is  a  su- 
preme illustration  of  spiritual  brotherhood,  is 
not  after  all  the  only  example  of  the  unity 
which  binds  man  to  his  brother  man.  The 
unfoldings  of  modern  history  indicate  with  a 
new  and  startling  emphasis  that  we  are 
linked  one  to  another,  as  men,  as  races,  as 
nations,  as  factors  in  the  world's  progress,  as 
workers  together  with  God  in  the  historic 
development  of  human  life  and  destiny,  and 
as  members  of  one  great  human  family. 
We  have  approached  now  to  that  partic- 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS  23 

ular  phase  of  world-consciousness  which  has 
always  been  characteristic  of  Christianity, 
but  at  the  present  time  is  rapidly  assuming 
a  commanding  and  prominent  place  in  the 
spiritual  economy  of  the  world's  higher  life. 
I  mean  that  unique  interest  of  the  Christian 
heart  in  the  heart-life  of  man  throughout  the 
earth,  which  we  are  accustomed  to  designate 
by  the  general  title  of  missions.  It  may  be 
further  described  as  a  desire  to  distribute 
everywhere  the  universal  blessings  of  the 
Gospel  of  Christ,  to  impart  to  all  races  the 
good  news  of  that  great  and  glad  fact  of  the 
Incarnation,  to  introduce  Christ  in  the  im- 
manence of  His  marvellous  indwelling  into 
the  consciousness  of  universal  humanity,  to 
minister  in  His  name  to  the  race — the  whole 
of  it — which  He  came  to  save,  to  make  the 
love  of  God  in  Christ  a  part  of  the  experience 
of  all  the  sinful  and  lapsed  millions  of  man- 
kind. Can  we  dream  of  anything  nobler  and 
finer  than  this  divine  commission  which  our 
Lord  gave  to  His  Church  ?  Is  there  any  ex- 
ploit of  chivalry,  any  glory  of  military  achieve- 
ment, any  attainment    of  scholarship,   any 


24       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

service  of  culture,  even  any  height  or  depth 
of  patriotic  or  humanitarian  sacrifice,  which 
can  compare  in  simple  beauty,  grandeur,  and 
worth  with  this  superb  ministry,  in  God's 
name,  and  at  Christ's  command,  to  the  soul 
life  of  humanity?  It  is  just  this  which  is 
back  of  the  Incarnation  ;  it  is  just  this  which 
is  enfolded  in  the  mystery  of  the  Cross ;  it 
is  our  Lord's  outstanding  command  at  the 
close  of  His  earthly  life ;  it  is  destined  to  be 
the  crowning  triumph  of  His  eternal  reign. 
Earth  and  heaven  wait  for  its  consummation, 
and  long  for  the  exultant  joy  of  its  achieve- 
ment. 

This  world-consciousness  has  in  some 
measure  taken  possession  of  all  alert  and 
earnest  students  of  the  religious  progress  of 
the  times.  Those  who  expect  to  serve  in  the 
ministry  must  have  felt  its  power  and  in- 
spiration ;  those  who  may  have  already  com- 
mitted themselves  to  service  in  the  foreign 
field  will  find  their  minds  and  their  hearts 
adjusting  themselves  more  and  more  to  its 
absorbing,  yet  happy,  thraldom.  Every 
earnest  worker  for  Christ  in  this  luminous 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS  25 

age  of  the  kingdom  has,  with  more  or  less 
distinctness,  his  vision  of  the  world  for  which 
Christ  died,  and  hears  the  many-voiced  call 
of  that  great  deep  of  humanity,  whose  rest- 
less tumult  awaits  the  calming  voice  of  Him 
who  alone  can  say  to  its  troubled  moanings, 
"  Peace,  be  still." 

We  should  never  forget  that  this  cos- 
mopolitan spirit  and  purpose  of  the  Gospel 
— this  vivid  consciousness  of  a  world  mission 
— has  been  bequeathed  to  us  as  a  direct  and 
authorized  inheritance  from  our  Lord.  It  is 
writ  large  in  what  we  may  count  as  His  last 
will  and  testament.  He  introduces  it  with  a 
solemn  fervour,  as  if  He  had  said  :  "  In  the 
name  of  God,  Amen  !  Go  ye  into  all  the 
world,  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every 
creature."  Have  we  noted  carefully  how 
fully  this  large-hearted  interest  in  all  man- 
kind can  be  discovered  in  the  aspirations  and 
aims  of  Christ's  own  life?  When  He  min- 
istered to  that  Roman  centurion,  and  ex- 
claimed :  "  I  have  not  found  so  great  faith, 
no,  not  in  Israel,"  He  immediately  added,  as 
if  giving  utterance  to  a  gladdening  and  com- 


26       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

forting  thought  that  suddenly  took  possession 
of  His  mind,  "  and  I  say  unto  you,  that  many 
shall  come  from  the  East  and  West,  and  shall 
sit  down  with  Abraham,  and  Isaac,  and 
Jacob,  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven."  Upon 
another  occasion,  the  Greeks  who  "  would 
see  Jesus"  were  no  doubt  kindly  and  gra- 
ciously received,  just  as  in  after  years  He  wel- 
comed to  the  Christian  fold,  at  the  hands  of 
His  disciples,  "  devout  Greeks  not  a  few." 

Recall,  moreover,  His  broad  and  untram- 
melled commission  to  carry  the  Gospel  to  the 
Gentiles:  "For  so  hath  the  Lord  com- 
manded us,"  reports  Paul,  "saying,  I  have 
set  thee  to  be  a  light  of  the  Gentiles,  that 
thou  shouldest  be  for  salvation  unto  the  ends 
of  the  earth."  How  explicit,  how  unmistak- 
able, how  characteristic  of  the  mind  of  Christ ! 
In  that  last  tender  prayer  for  His  disciples, 
recorded  in  the  seventeenth  chapter  of  John, 
mingled  with  His  affectionate  remembrance 
of  those  whom  He  loved  then  in  the  flesh,  are 
these  significant  petitions  :  "  Neither  pray  I 
for  these  alone,  but  for  them  also  which  shall 
believe  on  Me  through  their  word  ;  that  they 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         27 

all  may  be  one ;  as  Thou,  Father,  art  in  Me, 
and  I  in  Thee,  that  they  also  may  be  one  in 
us  :  that  the  world  may  believe  that  Thou 
hast  sent  Me."  We  seem  to  have  fallen  into 
a  complacent  habit  of  applying  to  ourselves 
these  affectionate  references  to  outside  be- 
lievers, or  at  least  limiting  them  to  Christen- 
dom as  we  know  it,  as  if  we  Gentiles  who  up 
to  our  present  year  of  grace  have  become 
Christians  are  the  legitimate  heirs  of  the 
promises  to  the  Gentile  world  ;  but  could  we 
have  searched  the  consciousness  of  Christ 
when  He  spoke  of  "  them  also  which  shall 
believe  on  Me,"  is  it  not  more  than  likely 
that  we  should  have  discovered  that  His 
generous  thought  extended  to  all  ages  and 
all  races  ? 

This  universal  significance  of  the  person- 
ality and  work  of  Christ  may  be  properly 
deduced  also  as  a  necessary  inference  from 
the  fact  that,  being  a  revelation  of  the  Father, 
He  may  therefore  be  regarded  as  represent- 
ing in  the  range  and  intent  of  His  service  to 
man  the  universal  love  and  the  impartial 
sympathy  and  tenderness  of  Divine  Father- 


28       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

hood.  The  full  import  and  the  inclusive 
purpose  of  the  Incarnation  may  thus  be  in- 
terpreted in  terms  of  a  universal  Fatherhood. 
"  He  that  hath  seen  Me  hath  seen  the 
Father,"  Christ  declares,  and  we  may  not 
hesitate,  therefore,  to  read  into  our  Lord's 
attitude  to  the  world  the  implications  of  a 
heavenly  Father's  love  for  all  His  children. 
We  have,  moreover,  Christ's  own  interpreta- 
tion of  this  thought,  when  He  says,  in  His 
Sermon  on  the  Mount :  "  That  ye  may  be 
the  children  of  your  Father  which  is  in 
heaven :  for  He  maketh  His  sun  to  rise  on 
the  evil  and  on  the  good,  and  sendeth  rain  on 
the  just  and  on  the  unjust."  The  very  pur- 
pose of  Christ's  coming  was  to  fulfill  the 
ancient  promise  of  God  the  Father,  that  in 
Abraham  "  shall  all  families  of  the  earth  be 
blessed." 

We  may  note  also  another  word  of  Christ, 
which  identifies  the  world-significance  of  His 
mission  not  only  with  the  divine  Fatherhood 
which  He  revealed,  but  with  the  Holy  Spirit 
whose  coming  He  announced  :  "  But  ye 
shall  receive  power,"  He  said  to  His  disciples 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         29 

just  before  His  ascension,  "after  that  the 
Holy  Ghost  is  come  upon  you  :  and  ye  shall 
be  witnesses  unto  Me  both  in  Jerusalem,  and 
in  all  Judea,  and  in  Samaria,  and  unto  the 
uttermost  part  of  the  earth.' '  It  was  the 
same  Holy  Ghost  who  said  a  little  later,  at 
Antioch  :  "Separate  Me  Barnabas  and  Saul 
for  the  work  whereunto  I  have  called  them." 
Is  it  not  manifest  that  in  Christ's  magnificent 
outlook  over  all  ages  and  all  races,  "  there  is 
neither  Jew  nor  Greek,  there  is  neither  bond 
nor  free,  there  is  neither  male  nor  female :  for 
all  are  one  in  Christ  Jesus  "  ?  We  find  this 
sympathetic  and  large-hearted  attitude  to- 
ward all  mankind  further  accentuated  in  that 
favourite  title,  "  the  Son  of  Man,"  which  He 
seemed  to  love  to  apply  to  Himself. 

Christ  Himself  has  thus  given  the  initial 
impulse  to  universal  Christian  missions. 
When  the  world  knew  nothing  of  any 
imperial  ideal  which  was  not  born  of  military 
ambition,  representing  the  lust  of  power,  the 
spoils  of  ruined  nations,  and  the  thraldom  of 
subject  peoples,  Christ  was  cherishing  that 
unique    and     marvellous    conception    of  a 


30       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

universal  empire  of  love,  in  which  all  men 
were  to  be  brothers,  the  imperial  bond  being 
attachment  to  His  own  kingly  personality, 
and  the  supreme  ideal  of  service  being  to  link 
all  men  to  Him,  that  they  might  eventually 
share  with  Him  in  the  glory  of  a  transformed 
and  godlike  humanity.  His  ideal  was  cosmo- 
politan ;  His  programme  was  coextensive  with 
the  earth  ;  it  included  all  races  ;  and  the  ex- 
press purpose,  for  the  fulfillment  of  which  He 
has  promised,  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,"  is 
that  the  scattered  nations  and  the  wandering 
tribes  of  men  should  be  brought  into  oneness 
in  Him. 

The  thrill  of  that  world-consciousness 
lingered  in  the  Church,  and  wrought  with 
power,  until  it  brought  the  Roman  Empire 
under  the  sway  of  the  Cross.  In  spite  of  the 
fact  that  a  world-embracing  missionary  pur- 
pose failed  to  maintain  its  leadership,  it  has 
never  lost  its  hold  upon  hearts  that  were 
linked  by  spiritual  bonds  to  Christ.  It 
wrought  in  those  early  missions  in  the 
British  Isles,  in  the  days  of  Columba, 
Augustine,  and  Paulinus ;  in  medieval  efforts 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         3 1 

to  convert  pagan  Europe,  through  the  serv- 
ices of  Ulfilas,  Severinus,  Columbanus, 
Willibrord,  Boniface,  Ansgar,  and  others; 
and  again,  in  the  days  of  Cyril  and  Metho- 
dius, among  the  Slavs.  It  was  the  inspira- 
tion of  St.  Francis  of  Assisi,  of  Raymond 
Lull,  of  Hans  Egede,  and  of  the  heroic  and 
devout  Moravians.  Heurnius  was  in  the 
Dutch  East  Indies  in  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury ;  Ziegenbalg,  Plutschau,  and  Schwartz 
were  in  India  early  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury ;  and  we  come  at  length,  just  as  the 
nineteenth  century  dawns,  to  that  hero  of 
modern  missions,  William  Carey. 

It  is  interesting  to  read  of  that  humble 
cobbler's  shop,  immortalized  now  in  the 
history  of  missions,  and  of  that  rude  map 
of  the  world  made  by  Carey's  own  hands, 
and  hung  in  full  view  of  the  industrious 
workman,  seated  on  his  bench,  at  Moulton. 
It  is  inspiring  to  think  of  those  marvellous 
dreams  of  Christian  duty  to  the  nations,  as 
he  toiled  on  amid  the  throes  of  a  deepening 
world-consciousness,  and  of  the  convictions 
he    cherished  concerning  the  debt  of    the 


32       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Church,  and  his  own  personal  duty  to  the 
unevangelized  races.  He  seemed  to  realize 
what  many,  even  in  our  day,  are  slow  to 
recognize,  that  there  is  no  great  organized 
movement  in  human  history,  and  no  relation- 
ship of  trust  and  responsibility,  which  has  a 
better  right,  or  a  more  direct  and  supreme 
authorization,  to  cherish  a  world  ambition, 
and  plan  for  a  world  victory,  than  the  Church 
of  Christ,  the  world's  Redeemer.  Carey's 
busy  hands  were  at  that  time  still  at  work 
on  the  rough  shoes  of  a  rustic  community ; 
yet,  in  the  light  of  his  subsequent  life  and 
influence,  can  we  not  easily  picture  him  as 
even  then  shaping  with  noble  earnestness  of 
thought  and  purpose  the  footwear  of  that 
great  army  of  missionaries,  shod  with  the 
"  preparation  of  the  Gospel  of  peace,"  who, 
following  his  example,  were  to  tread  the 
highways  and  byways  of  distant  lands,  on 
their  errands  of  enlightenment  and  love  ? 

The  dimness  of  the  world-consciousness  of 
some  of  the  leading  minds  in  the  ministry  of 
that  day  was  revealed  in  the  reproach  heaped 
upon  Carey,  when  he  ventured  to  suggest  as 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         33 

a  subject  for  discussion  at  a  meeting  of 
clergymen  held  at  Northampton,  in  1786, 
"whether,"  to  quote  his  own  words,  "the 
command  given  to  the  apostles  to  teach  all 
nations  was  not  obligatory  on  all  succeeding 
ministers,  to  the  end  of  the  world,  seeing 
that  the  accompanying  promise  was  of  equal 
extent."  Listen  now  to  the  rebuke  of  the 
Chairman,  in  reply  to  Carey's  suggestion: 
"You  are  a  miserable  enthusiast,"  he  ex- 
claimed, "  for  asking  such  a  question.  Cer- 
tainly, nothing  can  be  done  before  another 
Pentecost,  when  an  effusion  of  miraculous 
gifts,  including  the  gift  of  tongues,  will  give 
effect  to  the  commission  of  Christ,  as  at 
first."  Carey  was  chagrined,  but  was  not 
daunted,  and  by  no  means  silenced. 

It  is  right,  however,  that  we  should  note 
just  here,  while  giving  due  honour  to  Carey, 
that  no  such  preeminence  should  be  assigned 
him  in  this  matter  as  to  regard  his  as  the 
solitary  mind  which  had  pondered  this  great 
theme,  and  given  expression  to  missionary 
convictions  in  the  centuries  preceding  the 
nineteenth.     The  story  of  medieval  missions, 


34       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

as  we  have  seen,  disproves  this,  and  so  also 
does  the  undoubted  missionary  spirit  notice- 
able in  the  plans  and  hopes  of  many  of  those 
who  sailed  westward  to  American  shores  in 
our  colonial  days,  and  even  still  earlier  in 
the  minds  of  some  of  the  most  distinguished 
explorers  in  the  preceding  age  of  discovery. 
The  formation  of  the  "  Corporation  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  New  England," 
in  1649,  the  "Society  for  Promoting  Chris- 
tian Knowledge,"  in  1698,  the  "Society  for 
the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign 
Parts,"  in  1701,  the  "Danish-Halle  Mission," 
and  the  Moravian  awakening,  in  the  early 
part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  of  which  we 
have  already  spoken,  all  furnish  evidence  of 
a  living  missionary  purpose  in  many  hearts. 

To  Carey,  however,  belongs  the  distinc- 
tion of  enlisting,  in  the  face  of  many  discour- 
agements, the  sympathy  and  cooperation  of 
his  Baptist  brethren  in  organizing  the  first 
of  the  great  English  societies  for  the  explicit 
purpose  of  propagating  the  Gospel  among 
the  heathen.  He  was  an  example  of  Chris- 
tian world-consciousness  when  there  were  few 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         35 

indeed  who  cherished  generous  convictions 
of  evangelistic  duty  to  the  race.  His  stirring 
watchword,  "  Expect  great  things  from  God  ; 
attempt  great  things  for  God,"  was  uttered 
first  in  the  sermon  he  preached  at  Notting- 
ham, in  May,  1792,  and  was  acted  upon  in 
the  formation  of  the  Baptist  Missionary 
Society  at  Kettering,  on  October  2d,  of  the 
same  year.  The  organization  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society  quickly  followed,  in  1795, 
of  the  Missionary  Societies  of  Edinburgh  and 
Glasgow,  in  1796,  of  the  Church  Missionary 
Society,  in  1799,  of  the  British  and  Foreign 
Bible  Society,  in  1804,  and  of  the  Wesleyan 
Methodist  Society,  in  18 13,  although  the 
Wesleyans  had  long  been  engaged  in  mis- 
sion work  before  their  formal  organization. 
Our  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions  was  founded  in  18 10,  and 
we  shall  soon  celebrate  its  centennial. 

The  close  of  the  eighteenth,  and  the  begin- 
ning of  the  nineteenth  centuries,  represent  an 
era  of  struggling  world-consciousness  in  the 
Christian  churches,  which  may  be  counted  a 
worthy  historic  supplement  to  the  Day  of 


36       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Pentecost.  It  was  a  dim  and  far-off  echo  of 
that  Macedonian  call  which  summoned  Paul 
into  Europe,  and  it  has  proved  an  epoch- 
making  experience  in  the  history  of  Christ's 
universal  kingdom.  The  movement  has  gath- 
ered headway  slowly,  amid  timid,  apathetic, 
and  curiously  perverse  hindrances,  but  it 
has  moved  on  with  unflinching  persistency, 
prayerful  constancy,  and  staunch  loyalty, 
until  it  may  fairly  be  said  to  have  won  over 
the  nineteenth  century,  and  to  have  entered 
the  twentieth  with  cheering  prospects  of 
steady  advance.  The  prayers  and  songs  of 
its  friends  and  converts  now  follow  the  sun- 
rise round  the  earth  every  day  of  the  year. 
There  was  an  average  of  at  least  2,600  com- 
municants admitted  to  Christian  churches  in 
mission  fields  every  Sunday  of  last  year. 
We  could  have  taken  possession  of  one  of 
our  large  church  edifices,  and  packed  it  to 
the  doors  morning  and  afternoon  every  Sab- 
bath for  the  past  twelve  months  with  a  fresh 
throng  of  communicants  at  each  service, 
claiming  their  places  for  the  first  time  at  the 
Lord's  Table.     If   you  could   have  slipped 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         37 

into  some  quiet  seat  in  the  gallery  at  any  one 
of  those  services,  and  gazed  upon  that  hushed 
and  reverent  assembly,  strangely  varied  in 
colour  and  garb,  but  one  in  hope  and  tender 
love  to  your  Saviour  and  mine,  would  you 
not  have  found  your  heart  in  thrilling  sym- 
pathy with  Christ's  joy,  and  cheered  with 
glad  assurances  of  His  victory  ?  Would  it 
be  easy,  do  you  think,  for  the  next  globe- 
trotting man-of-the-world  to  paralyze  your 
faith  in  missions,  and  convince  you  that  he 
was  a  walking  oracle  concerning  something 
about  which  he  knows  practically  nothing  ? 

One  of  the  things  in  which  our  young 
century  takes  particular  pride  is  that  it  is 
up  to  date ;  it  would  be  horrified  to  be  found 
behind  the  times ;  it  is  very  much  offended 
if  it  is  pronounced  slow.  We  speak  with 
fine  scorn  of  a  dead  medievalism,  and  con- 
trast its  musty  dullness  with  the  refreshing 
novelty  of  modern  conditions.  This  is  often 
much  emphasized,  and  in  many  respects 
justly  so,  as  an  offset  to  the  extremes  of 
scholastic  dogmatism,  as  a  caviat  against  the 
vagaries  of  fantastic  tradition,  and  as  a  be- 


38       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

coming  attitude  of  receptivity  toward  the 
now  illuminated  realm  of  scientific  research. 
The  world  in  a  thousand  ways  has  moved 
leagues  onward  out  of  medievalism ;  but 
there  is  one  aspect  of  happy  discovery  and 
alert  appreciation  of  the  signs  of  our  times 
concerning  which  the  movement  has  not 
kept  pace  with  the  advance  in  other  direc- 
tions. It  is  hard  even  now  to  kindle  a  sus- 
tained enthusiasm  on  the  subject  of  missions. 
The  new  knowledge  in  every  other  depart- 
ment seems  to  grow  apace,  to  receive  a 
hospitable  welcome,  and  often  to  attain  a 
dominant  influence  in  its  own  special  sphere, 
while  the  interests  of  the  kingdom  at  large 
are  looked  upon  by  many  as  a  negligible 
quantity.  It  is  seemingly  not  so  much  the 
duty  of  the  up-to-date  scholar  to  know  the 
present  outlook  in  missions  as  it  is  to  know 
the  latest  developments  in  theology,  in  criti- 
cism, in  science,  or  in  social  theories.  The 
otherwise  alert  and  well-informed  student 
may  entertain  very  inept  and  inexact  views 
on  the  subject  of  mission  duty  and  progress, 
and  yet  be  highly  esteemed  in  educated  lay 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         39 

society  for  scholarship  and  intelligent  mo- 
dernity, and  be  counted  as  only  very  mildly 
aberrant  and  retrograde  in  the  clerical  ranks. 
We  must  not,  however,  allow  ourselves  to 
become  pessimistic ;  there  are  aspects  of  the 
missionary  enterprise  in  our  day  which  are  as 
cheering  as  they  are  notable.  Its  friends 
throughout  the  Church  are  more  intensely 
loyal  than  ever ;  they  are  constancy  itself, 
devoted,  unwavering,  responsive  to  Christ's 
command,  loving  His  leadership,  and  joy- 
ously consecrating  themselves  to  His  service, 
in  the  hope  of  contributing  to  the  extension 
of  His  kingdom.  I  doubt  if  there  is  any 
firmer  or  more  tender  bond  between  Christ 
and  human  hearts  than  that  mystic  sympathy 
which  exists  between  our  Lord  and  His  faith- 
ful helpers  in  winning  the  world  to  Himself. 
No  one,  unless  he  be  historically  blind  and 
coldly  ungrateful,  can  fail  to  appreciate  the 
service  rendered  during  the  past  century  by 
the  loyal  friends  of  missions  in  so  cheerfully 
supporting  the  cause  during  its  sluggish  and 
unfruitful  pioneer  years.  They  have  led  the 
Church   on  with   a   devotion   and  liberality 


40       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

which  have  been  undaunted  by  difficulties, 
and  unwearied  by  halting  and  disappointing 
progress.  We  have  come  to  these  golden 
years  of  opportunity  as  the  result  of  their 
fidelity.  Their  patient  prayers,  their  unfalter- 
ing faith,  and  their  unfailing  gifts,  have 
made  our  present  outlook,  and  our  present 
privileges  possible.  Let  us  give  them  all 
honour  as  the  founders  and  patrons  of  a  new 
era  in  the  history  of  the  Church,  and  as 
worthy  labourers  together  with  God  in  the 
general  progress  of  enlightenment  and  civili- 
zation in  the  world. 

It  is  our  privilege  at  the  present  moment 
to  note  the  signs  of  a  rising  tide  of  world- 
consciousness  which  is  flooding  young  hearts 
throughout  the  Church  with  a  fresh  enthusi- 
asm for  universal  missions.  Is  it  not  true 
that  no  great  vitalizing  and  inspiriting  force 
in  the  religious  life  of  Christendom  can  be  or- 
ganized in  our  time  without  instinctively  ex- 
panding itself  into  world-wide  activities  ? 
The  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  has 
entered  the  foreign  field  with  enthusiasm  and 
marvellous  efficiency ;  the  Young  Women's 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         41 

Christian  Association  is  responding  with  in- 
tense and  beautiful  devotion  to  this  call  of 
distant  need.     The  World's  Student  Chris- 
tian Federation  may  almost  be  regarded  as  a 
foregleam  of  the  "  Parliament  of  Men."     It 
has  recently  (April,  1907)  met  for  its  biennial 
conference  at  Tokyo— the  first  international 
gathering  ever  held  in  the  Far  East.     The 
Student  Volunteer  Movement  was  organized 
for  the  express  purpose  of  enlisting  recruits 
for  missionary  work  in  every  corner  of  the 
planet.      The    Young    People's    Society   of 
Christian    Endeavour    has    its   banners   in- 
scribed in  every  great  language  of  the  earth  ; 
and  we  may  say  substantially  the  same  thing 
of  the  Epworth  League,  the  Luther  League, 
the  Baptist  Young  People's  Union  (at  least  in 
its  special  courses  of  mission  study),  and  all 
the  various  brotherhoods,  orders,  seminary 
alliances,  and  children's  unions.     The  Sun- 
day-school also  is  rallying  to  the  missionary 
call.     At  the  recent  convention  in  Rome  the 
duty  and  privilege  of  universal  missions  be- 
came a  note  of  power.     The  watchword  of 
the    whole     gathering    in    its    attitude    to 


42       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

the  kingdom  seemed  to  be,  "  Regions  Be- 
yond." 

Our  universities,  as  Yale,  Harvard,  and 
Princeton,  are  identifying  themselves  with 
some  specialized  form  of  service  in  mission 
lands.  The  Young  People's  Missionary 
Movement,  in  which  various  denominations 
cooperate,  is  interesting  many  thousands  of 
the  young,  and  also  of  the  old,  in  a  compre- 
hensive study  of  foreign  fields.  Its  confer- 
ences, its  Mission  Study  Classes,  and  its 
carefully  prepared  text-books,  chiefly  on 
foreign  missions,  are  useful  accessories  to  the 
cause.  The  Laymen's  Missionary  Move- 
ment, recently  organized,  while  not  confined 
to  the  younger  element,  is  alert  with  the 
vigour  of  youth,  and  is  significant  as  repre- 
senting a  desire  on  the  part  of  the  lay  mem- 
bership of  the  Church  to  participate  more  in- 
telligently and  helpfully  in  an  interdenomina- 
tional support  of  foreign  missions.  The 
Foreign  Missionary  Convention  for  Men, 
held  at  Omaha,  Nebraska,  under  Presby- 
terian auspices,  in  February,  1907,  was  char- 
acterized by  a  spirit  which  promises  a  new 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS        43 

era    in    missions.     A   like   enthusiasm   was 
manifested  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Con- 
vention held  at  Richmond  in  October,  1907, 
and  especially  in  the  remarkable  Men's  For- 
eign Missionary  Convention,  under  the  aus- 
pices of  the  Presbyterian  Board,  held  at  Phil- 
adelphia   in   February,    1908.     The   various 
Mission  Study  Classes  for  the  young  (a  new 
and  surprisingly  successful  effort  to  awaken 
interest  in  the  foreign  work)  seem  to  be  de- 
vouring  mission  literature  with  astonishing 
avidity ;  while  every  summer  brings  an  en- 
larged  list   of   schools   and   conferences  for 
mission   study,  scattered   over   this  country 
and  Great  Britain.     That  unreality  which  has 
so  long  shadowed  and  hampered  missions  in 
the  minds  of  many  good  people  is  coming  to 
an  end.     To  the  finer  Christian  consciousness 
of   our   times,  missions,  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  are  becoming  more  and  more  the  real 
thing  in  the  religious  history  and  prospects 
of  the  world. 

The  fact  is  that  the  young,  alert,  impres- 
sionable element  in  the  religious  life  of  our 
day  cannot  be  kept  out  of  the  world  arena. 


44       THE   NEW   HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

There  is  something  inspiring  and  fascinating 
in  this  all-round-the-earth  campaign  for  the 
Master  which  captivates  the  imagination  of 
young  enthusiasts.  Long  ago  the  Bible  and 
Tract  Societies  were  busy  in  the  many 
strange  languages  through  which  we  have 
access  to  the  minds  and  hearts  of  men  ;  and 
then  the  vast  missionary  enterprises  of  the 
Church,  what  a  story  of  consecration  they 
represent  during  all  the  past  century !  How 
they  have  gained  in  momentum,  power, 
extent,  and  victorious  advance,  until  the 
brightest  and  most  triumphant  annals  of 
Christianity  in  our  present  time  are  written 
in  foreign  missionary  achievements!  The 
Church  has  been  slow  to  recognize  this ;  it 
has  seemed  incredible  that  Christianity  is 
being  vindicated  and  honoured  by  its  progress 
in  mission  fields  even  more  than  by  its  ad- 
vances in  Christendom.  I  believe  that  I  am 
quite  within  the  bounds  of  truth  in  saying 
this.  Each  ordained  foreign  missionary 
of  the  northern  branch  of  our  American 
Presbyterian  Church  had  an  accession  of 
thirty-four  communicants  opposite  his  name, 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         45 

in  1906,  while  each  minister  in  the  home 
field  of  the  same  Church  had  ten.  A  church 
life  which  honours  foreign  missions  and  re- 
fuses to  be  self-centred,  has  been  demon- 
strated by  experience  to  be  the  safest,  sound- 
est, most  wholly  loyal,  and  most  richly 
self-rewarding  policy  which  a  Christian 
congregation  can  adopt.  Local  interests, 
however  pressing  and  exacting,  will  never  be 
neglected  by  Christians  who  love  the  uni- 
versal kingdom  of  Christ. 

A  further  interesting  feature  of  this  new 
world-consciousness  of  which  we  are  speak- 
ing is  the  changed  estimate  which  the  Church 
is  making  of  the  value  of  Christian  fellow- 
ship with  alien  races.  There  was  a  time, 
not  so  very  long  ago,  when  the  sentiment  of 
pity  was  in  the  forefront  as  a  very  prominent 
feature  of  the  motive  which  inspired  mis- 
sions. The  missionary  appeal  was  largely 
emotional,  laying  much  stress  upon  the  duty 
of  compassionate  ministry  to  a  suffering  and 
doomed  world.  Missionary  service  was  re- 
garded as  a  kind  of  slum  work  among 
sunken,   degraded,   and  altogether  degene- 


46       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

rate  races.  We  would  not  say  one  word  to 
disparage  the  influence  of  compassionate 
sympathy  as  a  helpful  stimulus  to  missionary 
zeal,  nor  would  we  question  the  dire  need  of 
non-Christian  races  for  the  Gospel  of  Christ, 
but  we  would  call  attention  to  the  fact  that 
missions  are  no  longer  merely  a  helping 
hand  held  out  to  save  sinking  races,  who  were 
regarded  as  of  doubtful  value  even  when 
pulled  out  of  the  depths  of  their  decadence. 
A  new  appreciation  of  the  value  of  these  neg- 
lected nations  is  taking  possession  of  the 
Church.  A  more  intelligent  judgment  has 
been  formed  of  their  capabilities,  their 
powers,  their  capacity  to  aid  and  cooperate 
in  the  upbuilding  of  Christ's  kingdom.  They 
are  beginning  to  be  appreciated  for  what 
they  are  in  themselves,  and  for  what  they  may 
become,  as  fellow-labourers  in  the  kingdom  of 
God.  The  contribution  they  may  make  to 
the  vitality,  the  resourcefulness,  the  spiritual 
charm,  and  the  courageous  loyalty,  of  the 
Church  is  more  fully  and  gladly  recognized 
than  ever  before.  "  It  is  impossible,"  writes 
Professor    Gwatkin,    "  that-   the     new-born 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS.       47 

energy  of  Japan  should  never  have  anything 
better  to  teach  us  than  the  mere  craft  of  war. 
The  ancient  wisdom  of  India  may  well  have 
a  new  career  before  it.     .     .     .     More  than 
this,    I   can   well   believe   that  some   of  the 
noblest   work   of  a   not   distant  future  may 
come  from  peoples  on  whose  ancestors  we 
ourselves  look  down  as   proudly  as  of   old 
imperial  Rome  looked  down  upon  our  own." 
Who  would  have  thought  a  generation  ago 
that  England   would  ever  seek  an  alliance 
with  Japan?     Who   can   measure   now"  the 
immense  increment  of  vigoufand  hopefulness 
which   Christianity    would    derive   from   an 
alliance  with  the  great  nations  of  the  East, 
when  they  shall  become  loyal  to  Christ,  and 
consecrated  to  the  extension  of  His  kingdom  ? 
The    subject    is    one    of    such   present-day 
interest  that  a  recent  extended  volume,  en- 
titled, "  Mankind  and  the  Church,"  makes  a 
formal  attempt  to  estimate  the  potential  con- 
tribution of  some  of  the  great  non-Christian 
races  to  the  fullness  of  the  Church  of  God, 
when  they  shall  have  been  brought  into  the 
kingdom. 


48       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

There  is  still  another  aspect  of  modern 
missions  which,  though  it  can  hardly  be 
classed  under  world-consciousness,  is  never- 
theless surely  akin  to  it  in  the  sphere  of 
church  life  and  ecclesiastical  progress.  We 
refer  to  the  interdenominational  conscious- 
ness which  has  sprung  up  in  missionary 
circles  abroad,  and  has  no  doubt  quickened 
and  encouraged  the  plans  for  federation  and 
the  movements  for  practical  cooperation 
among  the  Churches  of  Christendom.  Very 
manifest  progress  in  the  direction  of  church 
unity  is  involved  in  the  recent  successful 
Conference  on  Church  Federation  and  Inter- 
denominational Cooperation.  This  has  re- 
sulted, as  we  all  know,  in  the  organization 
of  a  permanent  representative  committee, 
with  instructions  to  plan  for  further  advances 
in  the  cultivation  of  a  deeper  consciousness 
of  brotherhood.  The  missionary  in  the 
foreign  field  has  confessedly  set  the  pace  in 
this  new  and  happy  rapprochement  in 
church  fellowship  at  home.  There  is  some- 
thing cosmopolitan,  large,  and  fine,  after  the 
pattern  of  the  one  eternal  kingdom,  in  this 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         49 

union  of  hearts,  this  simplification  of  aims, 
this  conservation  of  forces,  this  concentration 
of  power,  which  are  represented  in  the 
federation  movement.  If  we  are  all,  speak- 
ing with  the  reverent  boldness  of  Paul, 
"  workers  together  with  God,"  why  can  we 
not  be  partners  with  each  other  in  a  sym- 
pathetic, harmonious,  cooperative,  and  mu- 
tually helpful  service  for  the  glory  of  His 
kingdom,  and  the  good  of  our  fellow  men  ? 
The  recent  Centennial  Conference  at  Shang- 
hai was  marked  by  a  remarkable  exhibition 
of  the  strength  and  depth  of  that  spirit  of 
unity  which  is  beginning  to  dominate  mis- 
sionary hearts,  and  large  plans  were  made 
for  practical  cooperation  and  future  harmony 
in  the  organized  development  of  a  Chris- 
tian Church  in  China.  There  is  surely  what 
we  might  call  a  new  ecclesiastical  conscious- 
ness both  at  home  and  abroad,  in  this  grow- 
ing spirit  of  fraternization  and  coordination 
of  service.  We  shall  have  something  more 
to  say  on  this  special  aspect  of  our  subject 
in  another  lecture,  so  we  will  not  deal  with 
it  at  any  length  here. 


50       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE   OF   MISSIONS 

What  is  needed  in  the  Church  at  home  in 
our  present  generation  is  a  large  apprehen- 
sion of  the  unprovincial,  world-comprehend- 
ing, race-inclusive  character  of  the  kingdom 
of  the  Son  of  Man.  The  great  missionaries 
of  the  Church  have  ever  been  moved  by  pro- 
found recognition  of  the  world-conquering 
destiny  of  the  Gospel,  and  so  the  missionary 
Church  of  the  present  must  cultivate  and 
cherish  with  devout  enthusiasm  a  sym- 
pathetic understanding  of  that  all-generous 
impulse  which  dominates  the  mind  of  the 
world-conscious  Christ.  Paul  was  ever 
dreaming  and  planning  an  extended,  and 
yet  more  extended  programme  on  behalf  of 
Christ's  kingdom  ;  so  the  missionary  Church 
of  this  unrivalled  age  of  opportunity  should 
be  casting  out  its  lines,  making  and  extend- 
ing its  itineraries,  and,  in  the  person  of  its 
missionary  representatives,  taking  its  pas- 
sage to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth.  A 
church,  even  a  single  individual  church, 
which  in  our  day  is  content  to  delimit  its 
frontiers,  confine  its  sympathies,  and  narrow 
its  life,  to  its  local  environment,  may  per- 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         51 

haps,  if  it  long  survives,  be  a  useful  provin- 
cial instrument,  but  it  is  sure  to  lose  its  place 
of  honour  in  the  history  of  the  larger  life  and 
the  imperial  advances  of  the  eternal  king- 
dom. If  a  church  desires  a  grateful  recogni- 
tion in  the  consciousness  of  our  Lord,  and 
an  honourable  place  among  present-day  in- 
strumentalities for  the  spread  of  the  king- 
dom, it  must  at  least  consecrate  a  measure 
of  its  sympathy,  its  liberality,  and  its  prayer, 
to  the  furthering  of  the  world  purposes  of 
the  Redeemer. 

Where  is  the  true  man's  fatherland  ? 

Is  it  where  he  by  chance  is  born  ? 

Doth  not  the  yearning  spirit  scorn 
In  such  scant  borders  to  be  spanned  ? 

O  yes  !  his  fatherland  mustjbe 

As  the  blue  heaven  wide  and  free  ! 

Where'er  a  human  heart  doth  wear 

Joy's  myrtle-wreath  or  sorrow's  gyves, 

Where'er  a  human  spirit  strives 
After  a  life  more  true  and  fair, 

There  is  the  true  man's  birthplace  grand, 

His  is  a  world-wide  fatherland  ! 

Where'er  a  single  slave  doth  pine, 

Where'er  one  man  may  help  another, — 
Thank  God  for  such  a  birthright,  brother, — 


52       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

That  spot  of  earth  is  thine  and  mine  ! 
There  is  the  true  man's  birthplace  grand, 
His  is  a  world-wide  fatherland  ! 

Politically  it  is  difficult  for  Christendom  to 
adjust  itself  to  the  world  point  of  view,  for  we 
belong  to  different  and  scattered  nations,  and 
there  is  no  universal  State ;  it  hardly  exists 
even  as  a  political  ideal.  There  is  some- 
thing almost  eccentric  in  any  one  declaring 
himself  a  citizen  of  the  world,  and  priding 
himself  on  the  dignity  of  belonging  to  the 
planet.  Religiously,  however,  it  should  not 
be  a  strange  and  forced  attitude  to  regard 
ourselves  as  disciples  of  a  world  religion, 
subjects  of  a  universal  kingdom,  citizens  of  a 
spiritual  commonwealth,  without  material 
boundaries  or  racial  limitation.  Our  religion 
is  intended  to  be  universal ;  it  is  given  to  all 
humanity,  and  its  purpose,  its  destiny,  is  to 
draw  all  men  into  unity  of  faith.  The  heaven 
where  we  expect  to  spend  our  eternity  is  a 
place  of  many  mansions,  and  a  haven  of 
many  souls.  World-consciousness  is  natural 
to  the  Christian.  Are  we  right,  it  might  be 
asked,  in  calling  this  a  new  world-conscious- 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         53 

ness  in  the  experience  of  the  Church  ?  No, 
it  is  not  new  if  we  consult  the  mind  of  Christ, 
and  search  the  deeper  significance  of  all  the 
prophetic  interpretations  of  what  the  king- 
dom stands  for.  In  every  age,  too,  there 
have  been  leaders,  and  men  of  spiritual  in- 
sight, who  have  cherished  the  ideal  of  a  re- 
deemed race,  and  toiled  for  the  upbuilding 
of  a  universal  kingdom.  It  is  new  rather  in 
the  reach  and  power  of  its  present  sway  over 
Christian  hearts,  in  the  recognition  it  is 
claiming,  in  the  facilities  it  can  command,  in 
the  programme  it  outlines,  in  the  prominence 
assigned  to  it  in  the  thought  of  the  Church, 
and  in  the  shaping  of  practical  plans  for 
growth  and  expansion. 

The  time  has  come  when  the  humblest 
disciple  of  the  Church,  the  smallest  giver  to 
mission  funds,  the  most  obscure  member  of 
Christ's  body,  as  well  as  those  who  occupy 
responsible  positions,  and  give  out  of  abun- 
dant means  for  the  furtherance  of  the  cause, 
have  all  open  before  them,  if  they  will,  the 
pages  of  the  world-wide  record  of  mission 
progress.     Into  the  most  modest  and  shrink- 


54       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

ing  soul  among  Christ's  people,  in  the  quiet 
hours  given  to  the  perusal  of  some  bright 
and  interesting  missionary  magazine  (and 
there  are  many  such  at  the  present  time),  or 
the  study  of  some  favourite  missionary 
biography,  or  stirring  story  of  heroism  and 
unselfish  toil,  there  can  come  a  consciousness 
of  the  world's  need,  a  knowledge  of  mission 
progress  among  the  nations,  and  a  devout 
and  sympathetic  prayerfulness  for  the  world's 
redemption,  which  it  was  hardly  possible  to 
attain  until  within  recent  decades.  Into 
many  lives  not  favoured  with  the  privilege 
of  higher  education  has  been  introduced  an 
element  of  culture,  an  experience  of  soul  ex- 
pansion, through  an  awakened  interest  in 
world  missions.  Here  is  the  opening,  we 
may  say,  of  a  new  era  of  world-conscious- 
ness, which  spreads  ennobling  and  broaden- 
ing themes  before  the  minds  and  the  hearts 
of  the  entire  membership  of  our  Christian 
Church,  if  they  will  but  turn  their  attention 
to  the  fascinating  story  it  unfolds. 

It  is  not  difficult  for  us  to  recognize  the 
fact  that  the  United  States  at  present  has  a 


A  NEW  WORLD-CONSCIOUSNESS         55 

new  and  vivid  consciousness,  politically  and 
commercially,  of  the  existence  of  Japan,  and 
so  all  Christendom  has  awakened  to  a  new 
relationship  not  only  to  Japan,  but  to  China, 
to  India,   in   fact,   to   all   Asia   and   Africa. 
Nations  are  realizing  as  never  before  the  re- 
sponsibilities of  empire.     Christian  England 
is  becoming  more  conscious  than  ever  of  the 
growing  urgency  of  her  religious  duty  to  the 
hundreds  of  millions  within  the  boundaries 
of  the  Greater  Britain.     A  little  volume  re- 
cently published,  entitled,  "  Church  and  Em- 
pire," is  all  aglow  with  the  imperial  call  to 
the  Church  of   England  to  dedicate  herself 
anew  to  a  strenuous  service  beyond  the  seas. 
A  similar  spirit  is  surely  beginning  to  inspire 
the  larger  Christendom,  awakening  in  all  our 
churches  a  new  consciousness  of  nations  and 
races  ready  for   the  touch  of   the  universal 
Gospel,  responsive  to  the  call  which  summons 
them    to    a   nobler   career,   and   beginning, 
dimly  perhaps,  to  discover  a  new  vision  of 
destiny.     The  Church  is  lifting  up  her  eyes 
and  making  a  fresh  discovery  of  the  fact  that 
world-fields  are  already  "  white  to  the  harvest." 


56       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

It  seems  to  be  a  time  when  those  who  are, 
or  those  who  intend  to  be  the  pastors  and 
spiritual  teachers  of  souls  should  covet  the 
inspiration  and  cheer  of  a  full  knowledge  of 
God's  wonderful  workings  in  the  world,  and 
open  their  hearts  to  the  comfort  and  strength 
which  familiarity  with  missionary  advances 
will  give.  Let  us  all  cultivate  the  historic 
spirit,  keep  in  close  touch  with  the  large  heart 
of  Christ,  and  the  majestic  plans  He  cher- 
ishes. Let  us  receive  into  hospitable  minds 
and  welcome  with  responsive  feelings,  the 
tidings  which  greet  us  on  every  hand  of  the 
progress  of  Christ's  kingdom  in  the  world. 
It  will  cheer  our  hearts,  and  give  us  an  unfal- 
tering courage  in  the  midst  of  perplexing 
difficulties  and  arduous  toils,  to  maintain  an 
intelligent  and  ever  deepening  interest  in  the 
larger  vision  of  the  kingdom,  and  an  ever 
growing  consciousness  of  the  certainty  of  its 
coming  victory. 


LECTURE  II 

STRATEGIC    ASPECTS    OF 
THE   MISSIONARY  OUTLOOK 


"  The  world  generally  seems  a  long  way  from  conversion — 
thus  it  appears  to  the  carnal  eye  ;  and  yet  the  heathen  nations 
everywhere  are  white  breadths  ready  for  the  sickle.  The  Jews 
thought  the  Samaritans  very  unripe,  and  yet  Christ  showed  how 
ready  they  were  for  the  richest  blessing,  and  we  see  the  same  in 
the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  The  Samaritan  woman  represents  sus- 
ceptible heathendom ;  and  her  nation  itself  was  typical  of  the 
great  pagan  nations  of  to-day.  The  Samaritans  had  their  tem- 
ples, festivals,  scriptures,  as  India  and  China  have  to-day — a 
strange  jumble  of  truth  and  error,  spirituality  and  necromancy, 
was  their  religion,  as  is  the  current  religion  of  the  Chinese, 
Japanese,  and  Hindu.  And  yet  He  who  knew  what  was  in 
man,  to  whom  all  hearts  are  open,  saw  these  Samaritans  bend- 
ing like  bearded  grain  for  the  harvester. 

The  world  waits  for  the  Church  to  go  in  and  gather  the  living 
corn.  Do  you  ask  where  is  the  sowing  ?  It  is  done.  The 
New  Testament  represents  the  Church  as  a  reaper,  not  as  a 
sower;  Christ  is  the  Sower.  He  moves  in  His  Spirit  among 
the  million,  scattering  living  germs  in  the  red  furrows  of  human 
hearts,  and  the  Church  is  to  follow,  reaping  where  it  has  not 
sown,  gathering  where  it  has  not  strawed.  Do  you  ask  where 
the  ripening  forces  are  ?  They  have  done  their  work  already. 
The  sun  acts  where  it  does  not  shine.  The  roots  of  trees  are 
vitalized  by  the  sunshine,  although  they  are  not  bathed  in  it ! 
So,  in  the  kingdom  of  souls,  the  Light  of  the  World  acts  where 
He  does  not  manifestly  shine.  We  are  not  waiting  for  God  ; 
God  is  waiting  for  us,  and  the  harvest  is  spoiling  through  our 
sloth  and  unbelief."— JF.  L.  Watkinson,  D.  D.t  LL.  D. 


LECTURE  II 

STRATEGIC   ASPECTS   OF  THE 
MISSIONARY  OUTLOOK 

THAT  these  times  in  which  we  live  are 
making  history  of  extraordinary  in- 
terest and  large  constructive  portent 
is  a  statement  which  few  would  be  inclined 
to  question.  We  are  living  under  the  pres- 
sure of  great  responsibilities,  in  the  presence 
of  serious  problems,  and  with  mighty  issues 
hanging  upon  the  decisions  we  make,  and  the 
action  we  take.  It  is  an  era  of  rapid  prog- 
ress and  swift  changes  in  almost  every  de- 
partment of  the  world's  activities.  The  alert- 
ness of  the  times  is  wonderful.  Statesman- 
ship feels  the  tension  and  strain  of  its  duties, 
and  keeps  closely  in  touch  with  changing 
world  conditions ;  the  intellectual  life  of  our 
age  is  keenly  responsive  to  the  new  light 
which  is  illuminating  the  scientific,  artistic, 
59 


60       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

and  cultural  progress  of  our  day ;  the  inven- 
tive genius  of  our  age  is  giving  itself  with 
unwearied  diligence  to  the  study  of  the  secret 
forces  of  nature,  and  not  even  the  faintest 
gleams  of  light  are  regarded  with  indifference, 
or  allowed  to  pass  without  searching  scrutiny. 
The  signs  of  the  times  in  all  departments  of 
knowledge,  in  every  realm  of  practical  en- 
deavour, and  in  every  sphere  of  commercial 
and  industrial  activity  are  closely  inspected 
and  carefully  analyzed  by  those  who  are 
watchful  for  opportunity,  and  ambitious  for 
success.  Much  more  might  be  said  of  this 
general  tenor  concerning  the  growing  in- 
tensity of  life,  and  the  broadening  interests 
of  culture  and  intellectual  application  in  this 
our  day. 

In  connection  with  the  subject  we  have 
in  hand — the  new  outlook  in  missions — a 
very  pertinent  question  suggests  itself,  as  to 
whether  we  are  giving  due  attention  to  the 
signs  of  God's  mighty  activities  in  this  sphere 
of  effort,  and  are  seeking  diligently  to  realize 
the  significance  of  the  contemporary  annals 
of  the  kingdom.     Are  we  not,  as  children  of 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  6l 

the  kingdom,  as  stewards  of  divine  grace, 
workmen  whose  duty  it  is  to  handle  those 
mighty  spiritual  forces  which  have  guided 
and  glorified  the  higher  life  of  the  race, 
bound  to  study  the  signs  of  the  times,  and 
in  our  own  realm  of  service  to  show  the  same 
alertness  and  intelligent  use  of  opportunity 
which  characterize  the  statesman,  the  soldier, 
the  merchant,  the  scientist,  the  student,  and, 
in  fact,  every  keen  expert  of  our  day  ?  Let 
us  by  no  means  ignore  the  fact  that  we  are 
undoubtedly  face  to  face  at  the  present  time 
with  an  outlook  in  mission  fields  which  has 
never  been  surpassed  in  its  optimistic  signifi- 
cance. It  is  quite  within  the  bounds  of  truth, 
I  think,  to  say  that  the  kingdom  of  God  is 
in  action  throughout  the  earth  to-day  to  an 
extent  rarely,  if  ever,  exceeded  in  its  mystic 
energies  and  its  many-sided  contact  with 
humanity, 

I  am  well  aware  that  there  are  many  diffi- 
culties and  hindrances  which  handicap  mis- 
sions among  alien  peoples.  I  have  not  the 
time,  however,  to  dwell  upon  this  aspect  of 
the  subject.     We  will  take  it  for  granted  that 


62       THE  NEW   HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

many  embarrassing  obstacles  and  much  fa- 
natical opposition  must  be  met.  We  will 
bear  in  mind  at  the  same  time  that  what  may 
truly  be  said  of  progress  and  encouragement 
is  all  the  more  cheering  and  significant,  be- 
cause it  represents  success  in  the  face  of 
grave  difficulties.  It  stands  for  victory  over 
alert  and  determined  opposition  on  the  part 
of  ignorant  and  unregenerate  man,  as  well  as 
vigilant  hostility  on  the  part  of  the  powers  of 
darkness. 

Let  us  ask  what  is  there  which  would  now 
fix  our  attention  could  we  have  a  vision  of 
the  kingdom  of  Christ  in  its  progress  among 
the  non-Christian  nations  of  the  earth  ?  The 
scene  is  surely  one  of  exceptional  interest ; 
the  outlook  is  alive  with  mighty  move- 
ments ;  centenary  and  bi-centenary  celebra- 
tions, marked  by  joyous  enthusiasm,  are  in 
the  foreground.  It  was  in  1706  that  the 
Danish  missionaries,  Ziegenbalg  and  Pliits- 
chau,  landed  in  India,  where  the  bi-centenary 
of  this  event  has  recently  (1906)  been  cele- 
brated. We  are  living  in  an  era  of  mis- 
sionary centennials.    We  have  had  several 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  63 

already  to  commemorate  the  founding  of  the 
great  British  societies,  and  now  we  are  be- 
ginning to  hold  these  centenary  festivals  in 
our  own  country.  The  echoes  of  the  Hay- 
stack celebration  are  still  lingering  in  our 
ears,  and  before  us,  in  19 10,  is  the  one  hun- 
dredth anniversary  of  the  founding  of  the 
American  Board.  Over  in  China  there  has 
been  held  at  Shanghai  (1907)  the  Centenary 
Conference  commemorative  of  the  arrival  of 
Morrison,  the  first  missionary  of  the  modern 
era  to  China,  who  landed  there  in  1807.  It 
was  indeed  a  strategic  church  council,  deal- 
ing with  the  spiritual  welfare  of  a  constitu- 
ency of  possibly  four  hundred  million  souls. 
These  centennial  festivals  are  also  beginning 
to  be  kept  under  local  auspices  in  our  foreign 
fields,  as  recently  at  Nagercoil,  in  South 
India,  where  the  London  Mission  has  com- 
memorated the  beginning  of  its  work  in  that 
region.  Amid  the  darkness,  ignorance,  and 
deep  degradation  of  that  section  of  India  the 
Mission  has  been  at  work  for  a  hundred 
years,  and  behold  a  despised  pariah  com- 
munity uplifted,  transformed,  and   in  large 


64       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

measure  delivered  from  the  humiliation  and 
suffering  of  their  lot,  with  over  350  churches, 
attended  by  over  71,000  worshippers,  and 
with  educational  facilities  which  would  be  a 
blessing  to  any  people  1 

Turning  to  the  more  general  outlook,  we 
can  hardly  realize  to  what  an  extent,  in 
numerous  and  varied  lines  of  progress,  ours 
is  an  age  of  great  and  momentous  activities. 
We  find  this  to  be  true  in  national  and  inter- 
national affairs,  in  politics,  commerce,  discov- 
eries and  inventions,  improved  facilities,  in- 
dustrial progress,  philanthropic  projects,  re- 
form movements,  military  and  naval  arma- 
ments, and,  at  the  same  time,  influential 
movements  in  the  interests  of  universal 
peace.  The  world  seems  to  be  tremulous 
with  excitement,  and  tumultuous  with  change. 

In  the  midst  of  it  all,  despite  the  signs  of 
unrest  and  the  measure  of  unreality  which 
characterize  much  of  the  religious  life  of  our 
day,  I  cannot  but  believe  that  in  the  hearts 
and  lives  of  many  dear  disciples  of  Christ 
may  be  found  a  depth  of  earnestness,  a 
wealth  of  liberality,  and  an  outlay  of  practical 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  65 

activity,  which  form  a  quite  sufficient  answer 
to  the  pessimistic  complaint  that  the  Chris- 
tianity of  our  time  is  either  tainted  or  de- 
generate. On  the  contrary,  I  believe  that 
the  recognition  of  an  altruistic  obligation, 
the  duty  of  stewardship  broadly  and  gener- 
ously interpreted,  is  an  outstanding  char- 
acteristic of  the  loyal  church  life  of  to-day, 
as  well  as  a  marked  feature  of  the  spirit 
of  the  age.  This  recognition  of  a  duty  to 
the  world,  as  one  of  the  noblest  as  well  as 
the  most  urgent  obligations  of  the  religious 
life,  especially  where  sin  and  suffering  call 
for  the  ministry  of  love  and  pity,  is  not  only 
a  ruling  motive  in  the  activities  of  the  Church, 
but  it  is  winning  its  way  to  a  commanding 
influence  in  our  secular  life.  That  we  owe 
much  to  alien  and  backward  races,  in  the 
spirit  of  human  brotherhood,  and  in  the 
discharge  of  altruistic  claims,  is  a  conviction 
which  is  slowly  dominating  the  imperial 
policy  of  nations.  It  can  be  detected  even 
in  international  diplomacy ;  it  may  be  dis- 
covered in  the  growing  sense  of  fraternity 
between    races    and    nations  which  a  half 


66       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

century  or  more  ago  were  looked  upon  as 
having  hardly  anything  in  common.  It 
inspires  private  beneficence,  and  it  even 
dictates  State  papers,  as  when  a  famine  in 
China  makes  its  mute  appeal  for  aid,  or 
Congo  atrocities  call  loudly  for  international 
intervention.  Then,  as  regards  the  religious 
activities  of  our  times,  are  they  not  altruistic 
to  an  unprecedented  extent,  not  simply  as 
regards  home  responsibilities,  and  the  press- 
ing demands  of  the  great  needs  of  our  im- 
mediate environment,  but  in  their  readiness 
to  respond  to  the  call  of  the  world  for  re- 
ligious light  and  guidance,  and  helpful 
ministry  ? 

It  is  not  too  much  to  claim,  moreover,  that 
the  great  and  resistless  Christian  apologetic 
of  our  day  is  missions.  I  do  not  refer 
simply  to  the  evidence  which  is  based  upon 
success  in  the  foreign  fields,  although  that 
alone  would  seem  to  be  sufficient,  but  I 
mean  to  include  the  determined  and  un- 
wavering loyalty  of  the  Christian  Church  at 
home  to  the  missionary  aim  of  Christianity. 
So  long  as  Christian  people  here  and  through- 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  67 

out  Christendom  are  responsive  to  this 
world-wide  duty  to  the  extent  which  marks 
the  religious  spirit  of  the  times,  and  so  long 
as  the  success  in  mission  fields  is  what  it  is, 
we  may  go  quietly  and  patiently  on  our 
way,  with  a  song  of  gratitude  in  our  hearts, 
and  an  assurance  of  triumph  in  our  souls. 
Christianity  is  safe ;  God  is  breaking  a  new 
seal  of  evidence,  which  will  comfort  and 
support  His  people,  and  which  will  convince 
the  age.  Is  it  not  clear  that  if  we  were 
thoroughly  loyal,  and  ready  to  put  forth  the 
power  which  is  lodged  in  the  Church  as  a 
whole,  we  might  achieve  results,  and  gain 
victories,  the  significance  of  which  it  would 
be  impossible  to  ignore  ? 

Have  you  noticed,  let  me  ask,  the  remark- 
able change  in  the  tone  of  the  secular  press 
of  this  country,  as  well  as  in  that  of  Great 
Britain,  during  the  last  ten  years,  in  its 
favourable  references  to  the  missionary 
enterprise,  and  to  the  missionary  himself? 
Read  the  article  on  missions  in  China,  by  the 
Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  in  the  Atlantic 
Monthly    for    September,    1906;    read    Dr. 


68       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Barton's  article  in  the  North  American  Re- 
view for  October  19th  of  the  same  year, 
and  the  editorial  comments  upon  it  in  the 
same  number.  The  Daily  Mail  of  London 
has  recently  published  an  article  entitled, 
"  The  Great  Missionary  Question,"  by  its 
special  correspondent  in  the  East,  Mr.  F.  A. 
McKenzie,  in  which  he  calls  the  missionary 
movement  in  China  to-day,  to  quote  his  own 
words  :  "  One  of  the  most  splendid  exhibi- 
tions of  Anglo-Saxon  altruism  the  world  has 
ever  seen."  Another  article  by  the  same 
writer,  in  the  issue  of  the  Sunday  Strand  for 
February,  1907,  is  a  vigorous  and  discrimi- 
nating endorsement  of  missions  in  the  Far 
East.  You  are  no  doubt  aware  of  the  fact 
that  a  newspaper  syndicate  sent  a  special 
correspondent,  Mr.  William  T.  Ellis,  around 
the  world  to  investigate  missions,  and  write 
for  publication  in  various  journals  an  abso- 
lutely impartial  and  dispassionate  report  of 
his  inspection  of  what  one  newspaper  calls, 
"  the  biggest  American  enterprise  abroad." 
In  his  first  article,  which  appeared  in  the 
New  York  Tribune,  as  well  as  in  numerous 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  69 

other  journals,  Mr.  Ellis  writes  :  "I  am  on 
the  trail  of  the  American  missionary.  His 
footprints  are  large  and  deep  and  many, 
and  I  shall  certainly  come  up  with  him. 
Then  we  shall  know  what  sort  of  an  indi- 
vidual he  is  ;  whether  a  haloed  saint,  as  the 
religious  papers  represent,  or  a  double-dyed 
knave,  as  many  other  papers  and  people 
assert,  or  a  plain,  every-day  American,  trying 
to  do  an  extraordinary  job  to  the  best  of  his 
ability."  Mr.  Ellis  has  since  returned,  hav- 
ing written  many  letters  which  refer  in  terms 
of  admiration  to  the  missionary  and  his  work. 
It  is  easy  to  read  between  the  lines  of  his 
communications,  and  discover  the  impression 
which  missions  have  made  upon  this  ob- 
servant journalist,  who  sailed  away  with  a 
syndicate  commission  in  his  pocket,  under 
orders  to  write  the  unvarnished  truth  about 
the  missionary  business.  His  able  addresses 
since  his  return  express  a  conviction,  based 
upon  personal  investigation,  that  missions 
have  a  unique  value  to  the  world,  and  are  an 
efficient  agency  for  promoting  the  all-round 
betterment  of    mankind.     A  discriminating 


yo       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

reader  can  hardly  fail  to  note  that  the  secular 
press  of  our  day,  if  we  are  to  believe  evidence 
which  is  appearing  on  every  side,  is  fast  be- 
coming the  friend  and  supporter  of  the  mis- 
sionary enterprise.  We  might  name  prom- 
inent papers  in  different  sections  of  our  coun- 
try, and  in  Great  Britain,  which  could  be  cited 
as  illustrating  this  changed  point  of  view,  in 
some  instances  to  a  surprising  as  well  as 
gratifying  extent.  To  be  sure,  the  educa- 
tional and  philanthropic  side  of  missions  is 
emphasized  and  especially  commended,  but 
the  moral  and  reformatory  influence  is  no 
longer  disparaged,  and  may  we  not  hope 
that  the  religious  benefits  will  also  be  rec- 
ognized and  approved?  In  fact,  I  believe 
that  the  mighty  power  of  the  press  in  Chris- 
tendom will  eventually  be  largely  won  over 
to  the  support  of  missions,  and  will  become  a 
valued  helper  in  the  great  cause.  The  crit- 
ical or  disparaging  animus  observable  in  the 
past  was  no  doubt  due  in  part  to  lack  of  in- 
formation, for  which  the  keen  scent  for  news 
when  once  it  discovered  the  trail  of  the  mission- 
ary has  happily  supplied  a  sufficient  remedy. 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  7 1 

Have  you  read  also  the  cumulative  testi- 
monies favourable  to  missions  from  men  in 
high  stations  throughout  the  world — men  of 
character,  dignity,  intelligence,  and  official 
position,  having  full  opportunity  to  speak  as 
first-hand  observers  ?  I  shall  refer  again  to 
these  witnesses  in  another  lecture.  We  may 
note  here  that  Mr.  Wm.  J.  Bryan  and  Sec- 
retary Taft,  returning  from  journeys  round 
the  world,  speak  with  frank  enthusiasm  of 
the  service  missions  are  rendering,  while, 
among  other  names  well  known  to  us  all,  we 
may  mention  President  Angell,  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Michigan,  and  Messrs.  John  Barrett, 
Alfred  Buck,  Edwin  Conger,  Charles  Denby, 
John  W.  Foster,  John  Wanamaker,  Julian 
Hawthorne,  Hamilton  King,  George  F. 
Seward,  Lloyd  C.  Griscom,  Luke  E.  Wright, 
Thomas  H.  Norton,  Gov.  George  R.  Carter, 
and  Commodore  Wadhams.  A  list  equally 
distinguished  could  be  given  of  British 
residents  who  have  spoken  in  terms  of  great 
respect  and  high  commendation  concerning 
missionary  work.  We  may  name,  the 
Honourable  James   Bryce,   Sir   Charles   U. 


72       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Aitchison,  Sir  Henry  Mortimer  Durand, 
the  late  Mrs.  Bishop,  Sir  Philip  Currie, 
Lord  Curzon,  Sir  Bartle  Frere,  Sir  Robert 
Hart,  Sir  William  Hunter,  Sir  Harry 
H.  Johnston,  Sir  Frederick  Lugard,  Sir 
Alexander  Mackenzie,  Lord  Napier,  Lord 
Northcote,  Lord  Radstock,  Prof.  William  M. 
Ramsay,  Sir  Henry  M.  Stanley,  Robert  Louis 
Stevenson,  Sir  Richard  Temple,  Lord  Mount- 
morres,  Sir  William  Mackworth  Young,  Sir 
William  McGregor,  Sir  Charles  Elliot,  Col. 
G.  K.  Scott-Moncrieff,  Sir  Frederick  Nichol- 
son, Sir  Andrew  H.  L.  Fraser,  Sir  Arthur 
Lawley,  Sir  John  Woodburn,  Lord  William 
Gascoyne-Cecil,  and  Sir  Ernest  Satow. 
These  testimonies  are  from  those  who  have 
visited  and  lived,  and  almost  all  of  them 
served,  on  foreign  fields,  in  the  presence  of 
missionaries,  and  I  have  especially  restricted 
the  list  to  such  names,  in  order  that  there 
might  be  no  question  of  the  dignity  and 
trustworthiness  of  the  witness,  and  of  his 
ability  to  know  whereof  he  speaks.  Our 
outlook  at  the  present  time  is  through  the 
eyes  of  such  witnesses,  and  from  every  one 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  73 

of  them  we  may  gather  assurance  sane  and 
strong  that  missionary  work  all  over  the 
world,  with  possibly  here  and  there  individual 
exceptions  in  the  case  of  freak  missionaries, 
is  worthy  of  admiration  and  confidence. 

Once  more,  have  you  studied  for  your- 
selves the  facts  which  the  contemporary 
literature  of  missions  yields  in  such  abun- 
dance, and  with  such  clearness,  force,  and  au- 
thoritative import?  If  so,  you  must  surely 
be  convinced  that  the  present  outlook  is  sug- 
gestive of  a  sturdy  and  well  founded  opti- 
mism. The  evangelistic  progress  in  some  of 
our  mission  fields  seems  to  give  promise  of  a 
coming  national  Pentecost.  We  have  had 
our  "  night  of  toil "  ;  may  we  not  hope  for  an 
era  of  "  bursting  nets  "  ?  Churches  are  multi- 
plying everywhere,  and  growing  strong  and 
aggressive.  Japan  is  entering  upon  an  in- 
dependent, self-governing,  and  largely  self- 
supporting  era,  with  a  Christian  leaven 
throughout  the  empire  which  is  full  of 
spiritual  energy.  The  kingdom  of  heaven 
in  Japan  may  be  as  yet  like  to  a  grain  of 
mustard  seed,  but  who  will  venture  to  deny 


74       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

that  when  it  is  grown  it  will  not  be  regarded 
as  "the  greatest  among  herbs?"  It  is  only 
thirty-five  years  ago  that  the  death  penalty 
still  hung  over  Christianity  in  that  empire, 
and  to-day  there  is  a  large  and  dignified 
company  of  native  clergy  and  laity,  who 
would  be  an  honour  to  Christianity  in  any 
land.  Japanese  education  bids  fair  to  be- 
come practically  universal,  since  over  ninety 
per  cent,  of  the  children  of  both  sexes,  of 
school  age,  are  under  instruction.  The  ed- 
ucational system  of  the  empire  requires  com- 
pulsory school  attendance  between  the  ages 
of  six  and  fourteen.  It  is  not  at  all  an  ex- 
travagant forecast  to  say  that  before  the  end 
of  the  present  century  Japan,  if  her  progress 
is  marked  by  sanity,  wisdom,  and  self-con- 
trol, will  be  one  of  the  most  intelligent  and 
powerful  nations  of  the  earth. 

Korea  is  building  churches,  and  filling 
them,  too,  with  a  rapidity  which  is  not  un- 
like the  celerity  with  which  we  erect  sky- 
scrapers here  in  America.  As  Mr.  Ellis 
writes,  the  Christian  Church  has  now  the 
"  opportunity  of  the  centuries "  in   Korea. 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  75 

One  of  our  Presbyterian  stations — Pyeng 
Yang, — which  was  opened  only  twelve  years 
ago,  has  already  in  the  city  itself  a  church 
membership  of  about  1,400  in  its  four 
churches,  with  a  regular  attendance  of  1,200 
native  Christians  at  the  weekly  prayer-meet- 
ing of  its  Central  Church,  and  is  the  centre 
of  a  large  outlying  work  in  adjacent  regions. 
Nineteen  new  church  buildings  were  erected 
in  that  part  of  Korea  during  1906,  and  out  of 
fifty-two  old  church  edifices  located  in  that 
section  there  was  a  call  for  enlargement  in 
the  case  of  twenty-seven.  In  the  mission 
churches  of  the  various  stations  connected 
with  our  Presbyterian  Board  there  was  a 
total  average  of  fifty-four  additions  to  the 
communicant  membership  every  Sunday  of 
1906.  In  the  Syen  Cheun  station,  opened 
in  1 90 1,  only  seven  years  ago,  there  are  now 
12,000  Christians,  nearly  one  half  of  these 
being  church-members.  For  every  dollar  of 
the  Board's  money  used  in  native  work  in 
that  province  during  the  year  1906,  the 
Korean  Christians  gave  $10.60. 

It  is  only  twenty-four  years  since  Protes- 


76       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

tant  missions  entered  Korea,  in  1884.  There 
are  now  fully  25,000  baptized  Christians, 
an  average  increase  of  over  one  thousand 
per  year  since  the  first  utterance  of  the 
Gospel  message  to  the  Korean  people. 
Fifteen  years  ago,  and  there  were  only  two 
congregations,  and  about  sixty  baptized  be- 
lievers ;  at  present  there  are  more  than  1,500 
Protestant  worshipping  assemblies  every 
Lord's  Day,  an  average  increase  of  about 
one  hundred  per  year.  If  the  number  of 
the  Protestant  adherents,  baptized  and  un- 
baptized,  be  reckoned,  it  will  be  well  over 
100,000.  All  this  has  happened  in  a  land  in 
which  the  Bible  is  not  yet  fully  translated,  the 
New  Testament  only  having  been  completed 
in  1899,  by  a  missionary  committee  of  trans- 
lators ;  a  final  revision  of  which  was  issued 
during  the  year  1906.  While  the  version  of 
the  New  Testament  prepared  by  the  Rev. 
John  Ross  of  Manchuria,  and  published  in 
1885,  should  not  be  overlooked,  as  it  served 
a  useful  purpose  in  Northern  Korea,  yet  it  did 
not  prove  available  for  the  southern  section 
of  the  country,  and  it  has  therefore  been  sup- 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  77 

planted  by  a  version  more  suited  to  the  uni- 
versal needs  of  the  people.  If  the  political 
experiences  through  which  the  people  of 
Korea  are  at  present  passing,  however  dis- 
appointing they  may  be  to  national  pride, 
and  however  depressing  to  national  hopes, 
shall  lead  them  as  a  people  to  seek  solace  in 
Christianity,  and  become  that  nation  whose 
God  is  the  Lord,  we  may  be  sure  that  they 
will  not  be  forsaken,  and  they  will  no  doubt, 
as  time  goes  on,  have  occasion  to  give 
thanks  to  God  for  some  marked  providential 
tokens  of  His  favour. 

The  outlook  in  China  is  one  of  extraordi- 
nary interest.  It  is  coincident  with  the  cele- 
bration of  its  modern  missionary  centennial 
at  Shanghai  in  April,  1907.  What  a  century 
this  has  been  since  Morrison  landed  there  in 
1807  1  The  solitary  missionary  has  become 
nearly  four  thousand,  if  we  include  both 
sexes,  and  in  place  of  the  cheerless  loneliness 
and  the  almost  prohibitive  ostracism  of  his 
day  we  have  now  throughout  China  a  small 
host  of  ten  thousand  native  co-labourers,  and 
a  Christian  community  of  nearly  half  a  mil- 


78       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE   OF   MISSIONS 

lion,  of  whom  about  two  hundred  thousand 
are  communicants  in  Protestant  Churches. 
The  Christian  Churches  of  China  sent  to  the 
Conference  of  the  World's  Student  Christian 
Federation  recently  held  at  Tokyo  a  delega- 
tion of  fifty-seven  students,  four  of  them 
being  women.  We  should  not  fail  to  note 
also  the  educational,  literary,  and  medical 
service,  under  missionary  auspices,  of  large 
proportions  and  signal  efficiency.  China  has 
seen  no  such  years  since  the  birth  hour  of 
the  Land  of  Sinim,  nor  has  she  during  the 
lethargic  complacency  and  self-admiration  of 
three  thousand  years  ever  dreamed  of  a  dec- 
ade so  bewildering  in  its  whirl  of  change,  so 
amazing  in  its  administrative  spasms,  its 
educational  advances,  its  social  reforms,  and 
its  evangelical  fruitage,  as  has  marked  the 
last  ten  years.  The  Chinese  are  setting  a 
pace  which  has  never  been  attained  even  in 
the  history  of  Western  Christendom.  There 
will  be  reactions,  of  course, — we  expect  them 
— but  just  now  these  celestial  plungers  seem 
to  be  forging  ahead  with  an  almost  reckless 
passion  for  reform  and  change,  and  the  goals 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  79 

toward  which  they  are  pressing  would  have 
seemed  a  few  years  ago  far  outside  the  range 
of  possible  attainment.  Other  nations  must 
be  counted  slow  in  comparison  with  the 
Japanese,  and  now  also  we  may  say  the 
same  of  the  Chinese.  It  may  have  seemed 
futile  for  any  outsider  to  try  and  "  hustle  the 
East,"  but  it  has  become  clear  that  the  East 
is  now  hustling  itself,  and  with  results  which 
leave  no  doubt  in  one's  mind  that  some,  at 
least,  of  the  Orientals  are  wonderfully  suc- 
cessful hustlers  when  they  get  busy  along 
that  line  of  effort. 

Is  not  this  true  ?  I  refer  you  to  the  daily 
papers  of  the  last  ten  years.  The  tele- 
graphic columns,  as  well  as  letters  from  cor- 
respondents, have  reported  many  interesting 
items  from  the  Far  Eastern  news  budget. 
Those  time-honoured  government  examina- 
tions in  China  have  been  literally  shaken  to 
pieces,  and  put  together  again  after  Western 
models ;  the  Chinese  educational  reforms 
have  planned  for  universities  in  every  prov- 
ince ;  colleges  and  higher  schools  in  large 
numbers  have  been  established  throughout 


80       THE   NEW   HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

the  empire,  while  village  schools  have  been 
recently  opened  by  the  thousands.  The 
project  of  making  education  compulsory  is 
under  consideration  by  the  government. 
After  the  Renaissance  came  the  Reforma- 
tion. Will  history  repeat  itself  in  China  ? 
It  is  a  significant  fact  that  several  responsi- 
ble officials  in  positions  of  great  influence 
have  recommended  to  the  people  over  whom 
they  rule  that  the  money  which  they  are  ac- 
customed to  spend  in  paying  costly  honours 
to  their  ancestors  should  be  devoted  rather 
to  the  education  of  their  descendants,  in 
order  that  the  living  might  be  better  pre- 
pared to  serve  their  country,  and  do  worthy 
work  in  their  day  and  generation.  Others 
have  interested  themselves  in  the  distribution 
of  Christian  literature.  There  has  been  an 
efflorescence  of  Chinese  journalism  within 
the  last  decade,  and  there  is  to-day  through- 
out the  empire  a  scramble  for  literature  with 
a  Western  flavour,  and  modern  in  its  subject 
matter.  Railroads,  telegraphs,  engineering 
and  mining  projects,  electrical  appliances, 
commercial    enterprise,   military  and   naval 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  8 1 

progress,  and,  in  fact,  the  whole  gamut  of  a 
national  awakening,  are  included  in  the  story 
of  China's  renaissance. 

More  wonderful  still  is  the  edict  abolishing 
foot-binding,  a  reform  which  began  years  ago 
in  our  mission  schools  ;  following  this  has 
come  the  drastic  manifesto  of  the  govern- 
ment against  the  opium  traffic,  another 
reform  for  which  missionaries  have  been 
battling  for  a  generation  or  more.  To  all 
this  we  may  add  that  the  Medical  Missionary 
College  at  Peking  having  been  formally 
recognized  by  the  government,  its  graduates 
will  be  officially  examined,  and  granted  gov- 
ernment diplomas.  There  are  other  matters 
still  more  strange,  of  which  we  may  take 
cognizance,  if  we  may  believe  our  eyes  and 
our  ears.  Listen  to  the  strange  tidings  which 
reach  us  from  the  Far  East — undisguised 
agitation  about  a  representative  scheme  of 
government,  after  the  model  of  a  Western 
parliament,  and  an  official  promise  that  it 
will  not  be  long  delayed.  Democracy  is  not 
altogether  unknown  in  China ;  it  forms  a 
basis  for  local  or  village  suffrage,  but  the 


82       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

great  empire  has  had  only  a  paternal  or  au- 
tocratic government  for  unknown  centuries  ; 
yet  to-day  there  is  much  discussion  of  im- 
perial citizenship,  constitutional  restraints, 
legislative  debate,  laws  otherwise  than  by 
fiat,  democracy  in  place  of  the  Dragon,  en- 
larged liberty,  and  finer  patriotism;  and 
all  this  involving  by  implication  a  new 
Chinese  nationality  sitting  clothed  and  in 
its  right  mind  among  the  nations  of  the 
earth. 

Surely  these  are  times  of  which  to  take 
note,  and  whatever  may  be  said  of  the 
secular  and  historic  causes  which  have  stirred 
the  East  to  this  unwonted  extent,  it  cannot 
be  denied  that  the  intellectual  and  spiritual 
enlightenment  of  the  people  has  had  much  to 
do  with  it,  and  it  cannot  be  denied  also  that 
the  light  has  come  in  large  part  from  the 
evangelical,  educational,  literary,  and  philan- 
thropic campaign  of  missions  during  the  past 
hundred  years.  Is  it  not  equally  plain  that 
the  opportunity  which  this  situation  offers  to 
missions  is  unprecedented  ?  China,  we  must 
remember,    has    fully  one    quarter    of    the 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  83 

world's  population  within  the  bounds  of  its 
vast  empire.  It  has  been  a  heroic  struggle 
to  make  any  impression  upon  these  throng- 
ing millions;  yet  the  result  of  the  century 
just  closed,  we  may  say  practically  of  the 
past  fifty  years,  is  represented  by  178,000 
church-members,  and  in  mission  schools  and 
colleges  there  are  nearly  60,000  pupils.  The 
fanatical  province  of  Hunan,  haughty,  inac- 
cessible, and  bitterly  intolerant,  ten  years 
ago,  has  now  one  hundred  missionaries  within 
its  boundaries.  This  quiet  work  in  China, 
which  has  hardly  ruffled  the  surface  of 
church  life  at  home,  has  thus  resulted  in  an 
average  annual  ingathering  of  some  three 
thousand  converts  during  the  past  fifty  years, 
and  this  is  merely  a  symbol  of  other  multi- 
form, diversified,  and  interlaced  results  which 
defy  tabulation. 

The  situation  in  India  is  complex,  but  full 
of  interest  and  promise.  A  vast  country, 
practically  under  one  government  sway,  is 
yet,  in  spite  of  its  many  races,  its  diverse 
religions,  and  its  historical  antagonisms, 
gradually  yielding  itself  to  the  moulding  in- 


84       THE  NEW   HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

fluences  which  missions  have  introduced.  A 
new  India  is  in  sight ;  a  new  society  is  in  the 
making ;  new  intellectual  forces  are  at  work  ; 
aggressive  and  yet  not  unnatural  political 
aspirations  are  asserting  themselves  ;  a  re- 
fined religious  consciousness,  evangelical  in 
its  deeper  trend,  and  dominated  more  or  less 
by  the  ethics  of  the  Bible,  is  gaining  ascend- 
ancy over  the  minds  of  vast  multitudes,  who 
as  yet  are  hardly  able  to  interpret  its  lead- 
ings, or  to  comprehend  its  significance. 
This  religious  and  moral  leaven  is  stimulat- 
ing great  mass  movements  toward  the  light 
and  hope  of  the  Gospel.  It  has  already,  in 
some  measure,  shaken  the  faith  of  India  in 
its  idolatry,  and  has  deadened,  and  to  some 
extent  destroyed,  the  Hindu  allegiance  to 
caste.  Even  if  we  had  no  visible  results  in 
churches  established,  and  in  communities  of 
professing  Christians,  the  moral  and  social 
changes  which  are  in  process,  the  intellectual 
uplift,  the  aspirations,  yearnings,  and  strug- 
gles, of  millions  of  our  fellow-mortals, 
awakening  to  the  consciousness  of  a  higher 
life,  and  a  nobler  destiny,  would  be  a  basis 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  85 

for  trustful   patience,  unfaltering  optimism, 
and  further  unwearied  toil. 

We  are  not  obliged,  however,  to  walk  in 
faith  as  regards  the  prospects  of  missions  in 
India ;  the  converts  are  there  by  the  hun- 
dreds of  thousands,  beautiful  examples, 
many  of  them,  of  the  sweet,  transforming 
power  of  the  Gospel  over  human  lives. 
There  are  still,  in  addition  to  these,  unknown 
multitudes  who  are  beginning  to  believe, 
perhaps  as  yet  but  vaguely,  and  with  only  a 
dim  hope,  in  the  power  of  the  missionary 
evangel.  They  can  hardly  understand  just 
what  they  are  longing  for,  or  realize  just 
what  they  need,  but  God  knows  that  the 
desire  of  their  hearts  fully  interpreted  is  to 
come  under  the  influence  of  the  Gospel,  and 
share  in  its  blessings.  Very  remarkable  signs 
of  spiritual  tumult  and  physical  excitement 
have  been  reported  here  and  there  by 
reliable  witnesses,  as  marking  these  recent 
stirrings  of  the  religious  nature  in  India. 
Whatever  explanation  may  properly  be  given 
of  them,  they  surely  indicate  an  awakened, 
alert,  and  fervid  temper  of  the  soul,  which,  if 


86       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

guided  by  evangelical  teachings,  and 
nourished  by  the  Spirit  of  Life,  will  lead  men 
at  last  to  a  sane  and  happy  vision  of  unseen 
realities,  and  a  conscious  experience  of  a  life 
hid  with  Christ  in  God. 

In  the  wild  recesses  of  the  Khasia  Hills, 
in  Bengal,  especially  among  the  Kols,  in 
the  homes  for  widows  and  orphans  con- 
ducted by  Pundita  Ramabai,  at  Aurunga- 
bad,  Ratnagiri,  and  at  numerous  points  in 
the  Madras  Presidency,  have  been  witnessed 
what  some  one  has  described  as  "prayer 
storms,"  sweeping  with  the  resistless  power 
of  a  whirlwind  through  vast  audiences,  and 
accompanied  by  violent  outbursts  of  contri- 
tion and  confession,  which  would  often  quiet 
down  suddenly  into  the  soft  and  tender  music 
of  some  hymn  of  solace  and  hope.  When 
the  soul  reached  its  limit  of  emotion,  it 
seemed  to  sink  exhausted  into  the  arms  of 
song,  and  was  lulled  to  rest  by  "  Just  as  I  am 
without  one  plea,"  or  "When  I  survey  the 
wondrous  cross  on  which  the  Prince  of  Glory 
died."  It  is  not  for  us  from  a  conserva- 
tive Western  standpoint  to  criticise  or  view 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  87 

askance  these  inward  convulsions  of  Eastern 
natures  under  deep  religious  conviction.  It 
is  often  the  case  that  stolid  personalities,  if 
they  come  suddenly  into  contact  with  reality, 
as  exhibited,  for  example,  in  an  earthquake, 
a  threatened  shipwreck,  or  some  alarming 
prospect  of  impending  peril,  are  brought 
at  once  to  their  knees  in  deep  distress  and 
fervid  supplication.  We  are  told  that  no  one 
can  see  God  and  live,  and  who  can  measure 
the  effect  of  a  vivid  spiritual  vision  of  the 
eternal,  such  as  opens  up  to  the  heart  and 
the  conscience  the  awful  vista  of  realities 
which  lie  beyond  the  dull  routine  of  our 
ordinary  experience?  Among  other  out- 
standing features  of  the  situation  in  India 
at  the  present  moment — and  we  may  say  the 
same  also  of  other  mission  fields,  especially 
Japan,  China,  and  Korea — is  the  spirit  of 
church  union  throughout  the  peninsula,  and, 
moreover,  there  are  fresh  and  welcome 
signs  of  a  missionary  consecration  in 
the  Indian  Christian  community,  as  the 
result  of  which  we  have  tidings  of  a 
National    Missionary  Society   of   India,   or- 


88       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

ganized  over  a  year  ago,  under  purely  native 
auspices. 

From  India  we  may  cross  the  Indian  Ocean, 
and  take  our  seats  in  the  carriages  of  that 
wonderful  railway  from  Mombasa  to  the 
Victoria  Nyanza — a  railway  where  in  case 
of  an  accident  the  danger  is  not  so  much  of 
fire  in  the  wreckage  as  of  a  raid  of  hungry 
lions  from  the  forest.  At  its  terminus  we 
embark  in  a  beautiful  steamer,  and  cross  the 
lake  to  Uganda,  now  a  British  Protectorate. 
We  find  ourselves  face  to  face  with  a  mis- 
sionary enterprise  which  dates  back  only 
about  thirty  years,  and  yet  there  is  now 
enough  evidence  to  convince  us  that  in  that 
dark  region  of  the  earth  a  Christian  nation 
in  the  making  is  before  us.  The  destiny  of 
Uganda,  unless  all  signs  fail,  is  to  be  Chris- 
tianized within  perhaps  another  half  century. 
It  may  claim  already  that  it  is  a  fairly  credit- 
able outpost  of  Christendom.  Thirty-one 
years  ago,  when  the  Church  Missionary  So- 
ciety entered  it,  in  1877,  it  was  a  land  of  incred- 
ible cruelty,  where  mutilation,  flaying,  and 
burning  alive,  were  royal  amusements,  and 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  89 

where  a  holiday  was  likely  to  involve  a  human 
holocaust.  Upon  the  death  of  a  king,  hun- 
dreds, even  thousands,  of  lives  were  sacri- 
ficed. Bishop  Tucker  of  the  Church  Mis- 
sionary Society  staff  in  Uganda  speaks  of 
the  pathetic  evidence  which  many  Christian 
converts  of  to-day  reveal  of  the  atrocious 
cruelty  of  the  past.  "  Here  is  a  man,"  he 
writes,  "  without  lips,  without  nostrils,  with- 
out ears,  mutilated  in  the  old  days.  Here  is 
one  led  of  another,  blind,  his  eyes  put  out  in 
the  old  days  by  order  of  the  king.  And 
there,  kneeling  at  the  table  of  the  Lord,  is 
one  who  can  only  take  the  consecrated  bread 
between  the  stumps  of  his  two  arms — the 
hands  cut  off  in  the  old  days,  by  order  of  the 
king." 

In  those  pioneer  times,  from  three  to  four 
months  of  toilsome  and  dangerous  travel 
were  required  to  reach  Uganda  from  the 
coast,  while  to-day  steam  facilities  are  at  our 
command,  and  the  journey  is  only  a  matter 
of  three  or  four  days.  If  we  look  about  us  in 
what  we  might  call  this  land  of  missionary 
magic,  we  shall  find  there  a  self-supporting 


90       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Church,  of  over  sixty  thousand  baptized 
Christians,  and  of  this  number  at  least  fifty- 
six  thousand — over  five-sixths — have  been 
added  within  the  last  ten  years.  The  num- 
ber of  baptisms,  according  to  a  late  report, 
now  exceeds  nine  thousand  annually.  The 
Protestant  Church  organization  of  the  king- 
dom of  Uganda  receives  no  financial  help 
whatever  from  England,  except  the  salaries 
of  the  British  foreign  missionaries.  It  builds 
its  own  churches,  which  already  number 
nearly  eight  hundred,  and  also  supports  its 
own  Christian  schools,  numbering  over  fifty, 
paying  the  salaries  of  the  native  teachers. 
On  the  heights  near  Men  go,  an  immense 
cathedral  has  been  reared,  which  will  accom- 
modate between  three  and  four  thousand 
worshippers,  and  is  usually  crowded  at 
special  services.  The  social  life  of  the  coun- 
try has  been  greatly  purified  and  uplifted, 
even  to  the  extent  of  placing  polygamy 
under  the  ban  of  public  opinion,  and  secur- 
ing the  voluntary  abandonment  of  slavery. 
The  young  king  is  a  Christian,  and  many 
of  the  highest  officials  of  the  government  are 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  9 1 

men  of  evangelical  faith,  while  liberty  of 
conscience  is  recognized  as  a  religious 
privilege  and  a  social  law.  Uganda  will 
soon  be  a  radiating  centre  of  evangelistic 
effort,  from  which  an  entrance  will  be  made 
from  the  south  into  the  Soudan,  along  paths 
which  foreign  missionaries  would  find  it 
difficult  to  tread  in  conducting  on  a  perma- 
nent basis  ordinary  missionary  operations. 

There  are  many  other  sections  of  Africa 
where  missions  have  maintained  themselves, 
and  in  the  face  of  almost  overwhelming  diffi- 
culties have  vindicated  their  power  to  en- 
lighten, uplift,  and  transform  native  com- 
munities. Were  it  possible  without  unduly 
taxing  your  patience,  I  might  give  you  de- 
tails of  the  unwavering  tenacity  and  the 
brilliant  achievements  of  those  splendid 
Scotch  Missions  in  the  British  Central  Africa 
Protectorate,  around  Lake  Nyassa.  I  might 
speak  of  the  French  Evangelical  Mission 
among  the  Barotsi,  near  the  head-waters  of 
the  Zambesi,  the  scene  of  Pastor  Coillard's 
labours,  where  King  Lewanika  has  abolished 
slavery  by  a  recent  royal  decree.     A  dread- 


92       THE   NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

ful  war,  somewhat  over  a  generation  ago, 
was  the  price  of  the  abolishment  of  slavery 
in  this  country;  but  in  Uganda  and  in 
Barotsiland  the  magic  wand  of  missions 
waves  over  a  slaveholding  community, 
hitherto  wild  and  cruel,  and  the  shackles  are 
peacefully  and  willingly  loosed.  I  might 
dwell  also  upon  the  outcome  of  the  mission- 
ary campaign  in  South  Africa,  and  there  is 
much  besides  to  say  of  the  work  in  the 
Congo  Valley,  in  Nigeria,  and  on  the  West 
Coast.  In  the  Congo  region,  unfortunately, 
we  have  the  white  trader  and  administrator 
at  his  worst,  tyrannizing  over  the  natives 
with  grievous  cruelty,  and  presenting  a 
formidable  hindrance  to  missionary' success. 
There  are  other  great  and  important  fields 
which  might  be  included  in  our  outlook,  did 
time  permit.  There  are  Dutch  Missions  in 
the  East  Indies,  where  a  remarkable  work 
has  been  accomplished  among  Moslems. 
There  are  the  South  Sea  Islands,  where  out 
of  the  soil  of  savagery  the  Christian  life  has 
come  to  a  noble  fruitage.  Then,  there  are 
Siam  and  Laos,  Ceylon  and  Madagascar.     In 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  93 

the  latter  island  the  signs  of  promise  are  bright, 
despite  the  present  harassing  unfriendliness 
of  French  officials,  and  we  can  never  for- 
get that  there  the  Gospel  has  already  won 
victories  of  renown.  In  order  to  compre- 
hend the  situation  of  all  these  mission  fields, 
we  must  have  a  view-point  which  commands 
also  the  toilsome  and  dauntless  past.  In  the 
light  of  the  historic  struggles  and  toils  of 
modern  missions,  the  present  outlook  is  won- 
derful and  full  of  promise,  with  hardly  an 
exception,  in  whatever  direction  we  may  turn 
our  gaze. 

Even  in  Moslem  lands  there  are  vanishing 
shadows  giving  place  to  hopeful  gleams  of 
light.  The  great  work  among  the  Oriental 
Christian  sects  in  the  Turkish  Empire,  is  a  rep- 
etition of  the  Reformation  of  the  sixteenth 
century  among  lapsed  Christians  who  were 
not  at  that  time  brought  under  the  influence 
of  that  stupendous  transformation.  This 
restoration  of  the  evangelical  element  in 
Oriental  Christianity  is  planting  powerful 
evangelistic  and  educational  forces  in  a 
crumbling  empire,  where  momentous  changes 


94       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

may  at  any  time  come  suddenly  and  unex- 
pectedly, adding  another  to  those  world 
surprises  which,  in  the  Providence  of  God, 
have  greeted  the  nations  in  the  present 
generation.  A  Missionary  Conference,  held 
in  Egypt  in  April,  1906,  to  consider  the 
status  and  needs  of  the  Moslem  world,  was 
one  of  the  significant  events  of  that  year. 

In  the  neighbouring  Moslem  empire  of 
Persia,  where  missions  have  been  toiling  for 
the  restoration  of  the  old  Nestorian  Church 
to  an  evangelical  faith,  there  has  been  work- 
ing a  leaven  of  religious  and  political  ferment, 
which  has  produced  the  revolt  from  Islam 
known  as  Babism,  and  has  now,  in  combi- 
nation with  other  causes,  kindled  political 
aspirations  for  a  constitutional  form  of  gov- 
ernment, in  place  of  the  autocratic  despot- 
ism of  centuries.  The  movement  may  seem 
as  yet  chaotic  and  unstable,  but  it  is  a  sign 
of  great  changes  which  are  coming.  The 
granting  of  the  constitution  by  the  late  Shah 
was  a  mighty  break  with  the  traditional 
past.  In  the  very  heart  of  these  Persian 
upturnings  has  been  planted  the  living  forces 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  95 

of  Gospel  reconstruction,  working  through 
the  Church,  the  school,  the  printing-press, 
the  hospital,  the  Christian  home,  and  the 
regenerated  individual  character. 

Is  it  not  plain  as  we  review  the  present 
progress  of  missions  that  it  is  down  these 
"  ringing  grooves  of  change  "  that  the  whole 
great  world  of  backward  races  is  now  spin- 
ning, with  increasing  momentum  and  bright- 
ening promise?  This  old  world  of  ours  is 
coming  more  and  more  into  touch  with  us 
every  year ;  it  seems  to  be  condescendingly 
adjusting  itself  to  the  hitherto  restricted 
scope  and  the  far  too  narrow  outreach  of  our 
Christian  consciousness.  The  time  has  now 
come  when,  in  the  Providence  of  God,  the 
world  is  fitting  itself  to  our  range  of  vision, 
placing  itself,  as  it  were,  within  our  reach, 
and  there  is  less  excuse  in  our  day  than  ever 
before,  should  we  fail  to  cooperate  heartily 
in  a  campaign  of  universal  Christian  effort. 
We  cannot  but  be  cheered  that  so  much 
has  been  already  accomplished,  and  that  the 
world's  redemption  is  taking  rank  as  one  of 
the  foremost  duties  of  the  followers  of  Christ. 


96       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

It  is,  or  it  should  be,  an  ennobling  ministry 
to  our  religious  natures,  a  broadening  in- 
fluence upon  our  Christian  characters,  and 
an  exhilarating  factor  in  our  church  service, 
that  we  are  living  in  this  era  of  incalculable 
missionary  privilege.  Christ  has  put  the 
interests  of  His  kingdom  in  our  care,  and 
commended  His  great  work  of  universal  re- 
demption to  our  devotion  in  this  our  time, 
under  conditions  which  have  never  been 
surpassed  in  attractiveness  and  grandeur  in 
the  world's  history. 

"  For  never  yet  there  burned 
In  the  soul's  sky, 
So  ample,  so  unearned, 

So  pure,  so  high, 
Such  hope,  so  well  discerned, 
Of  victory." 

We  are  truly  heirs  "  of  all  the  ages "  of 
splendid  privilege  ;  we  are  "  in  the  foremost 
files  of  time,"  as  leaders  in  the  world's 
destiny,  and  arbiters  of  human  hopes.  Never 
has  the  Church  faced  such  responsibilities, 
and  never  has  she  had  such  encouragement 
in  the  discharge  of  her  duty  as  the  world- 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  97 

wide  interpreter  and  messenger  of  the 
Incarnation.  Never  have  her  activities  had 
such  range  and  potency,  such  outreaching 
power  in  human  society,  and  such  open 
doors  of  access  to  all  mankind,  as  she  enjoys 
to-day.  As  if  to  emphasize  and  glorify  the 
call  of  obligation,  and  magnify  the  signifi- 
cance of  our  opportunity,  we  find  ourselves 
in  many  distant  and  perhaps  obscure  posts 
of  missionary  service,  not  only  ambassadors 
of  Christ,  and  bearers  of  His  spiritual  gifts 
to  men,  but  the  forerunners  also  of  the 
material  blessings  of  a  higher  civilization. 
The  ever  precious  message  of  forgiveness, 
the  glad  tidings  of  peace,  and  the  lessons  of 
righteous  living,  are  also  accompanied  by 
the  introduction  of  many  of  the  wonders  of 
this  age  of  science.  Missions  are  in  fact  sub- 
sidized by  the  inventive  genius,  the  mechan- 
ical skill,  and  the  almost  superhuman  com- 
mand of  natural  forces,  which  characterize 
our  times.  We  speak  of  Christ  in  some  un- 
enlightened and  alien  community,  and  in  the 
same  breath  we  heal  a  disease,  or  execute 
some  marvel  of  surgery;    we  summon  the 


98       THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

soul  to  spiritual  victory,  and  at  the  same 
time  we  bring  a  revelation  of  masterful 
power  over  natural  forces.  Our  preaching 
is,  as  it  were,  attended  by  signs  and 
wonders ;  our  message  of  spiritual ,  in- 
struction being  reinforced  by  the  resources 
of  the  modern  age,  of  which  we  become  in 
our  missionary  environment  largely  the  inter- 
preters and  heralds. 

The  people  strictly  within  the  limits  of  the 
territory  occupied  by  Presbyterian  missions, 
and  dependent  for  evangelization  upon  the 
northern  branch  alone  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  the  United  States,  all  of  them,  we 
may  say,  accessible  through  the  missions  of 
our  Foreign  Board,  exceed  in  number  the 
entire  population  of  the  United  States. 
Statements  perhaps  equally  startling  and 
significant  might  be  made  concerning  all 
great  missionary  boards  and  societies.  The 
missionary  literature  of  to-day,  we  may  say 
nearly  every  page  of  it,  in  books,  period- 
icals, newspapers,  and  personal  letters  from 
the  field,  fairly  shines  and  glows,  and,  it  is 
hardly    an    exaggeration    to    say,    almost 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  99 

explodes  with  the   dynamic  urgency  of  the 
Church's  opportunity. 

Consider  also  the  ease  and  security  and 
effectiveness  with  which  money,  even  the 
smallest  sums,  can  be  systematically  devoted 
to  usefulness  in  this  great  cause.  One  val- 
uable function  of  money  is  to  put  capital  in  ac- 
tion, to  facilitate  the  use  of  otherwise  stagnant 
financial  resources,  to  the  advantage  of  all 
concerned.  The  Church  of  Christ  has  an  im- 
mense investment  of  capital  in  the  foreign 
fields.  The  personality  of  its  missionaries, 
its  fine  equipment  for  effective  work  in 
evangelization,  education,  literary  produc- 
tion, industrial  training,  philanthropic  min- 
istry, and  social  influence  for  the  betterment 
of  mankind — here  is  a  wealth  of  capital, 
ready  for  use,  having  unknown  possibilities 
of  great  spiritual  and  moral  dividends,  and 
every  dollar,  yes,  every  dime,  put  into  an 
ordinary  contribution  box  for  foreign  mis- 
sions, sets  some  of  this  great  mass  of  capital 
in  motion,  and  enables  it  to  work  out  its  des- 
tiny as  the  almoner  of  blessings  to  the 
world.      No  generation  that  has  preceded 


IOO    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

us  has  ever  enjoyed  to  the  same  extent  the 
marvellous  facilities  which  are  now  at  the 
disposal  of  the  Church.  Ought  not  every 
contributor,  even  of  the  smallest  sum,  to  the 
cause  of  foreign  missions,  to  hand  in  his  of- 
fering as  a  cheerful  giver  and  a  happy- 
hearted  helper  in  the  extension  of  our  Lord's 
kingdom?  Your  single  dollar  gives  a  cer- 
tain measure  of  momentum  to  capital,  which 
represents  not  a  mere  collection  of  earthly 
cash,  but  the  priceless  service  of  Christian 
men  and  women  in  distant  lands,  and,  we 
may  include  also  in  this  aggregate  of  mission 
resources  that  contribution  of  spiritual  support 
and  reserve  power  which  the  Great  Silent 
Partner  on  High  has  incorporated  as  an  in- 
exhaustible surplus  to  this  marvellous  cap- 
italization of  the  noblest  enterprise  of  human 
history. 

The  situation  is  one  which  calls  for  serious 
and  devout  attention ;  it  should  stir  us  to  a 
holy  and  fervent  passion  for  the  coming  of 
Christ's  kingdom.  "  Thy  kingdom  come," 
we  pray  daily,  and  behold  here  it  is,  in  all  its 
potential  promise;   here  it  is  as  a  possible 


STRATEGIC  ASPECTS  IOI 

reality,  if  we  are  true  to  our  duty.  It  is  quite 
within  the  bounds  of  reason,  and  in  harmony 
with  already  demonstrated  facts,  to  say  that 
we  have  it  fully  within  our  power  to  secure  a 
larger,  finer,  sweeter,  and  nobler  life  to  the 
world.  The  triumphs  of  the  Gospel  over 
individual  lives  will  insure  this  ;  since  the 
multiplication  of  citizens  in  the  spiritual  com- 
monwealth of  God  means  the  sure  establish- 
ment of  a  kingdom  of  righteousness  among 
men. 


LECTURE    III 
A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES 


"  For  shining  examples  of  faith,  courage,  patience,  and  zeal, 
and  for  a  great  multitude  who  have  finished  their  course  in  the 
faith  and  love  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  we  render  our  humble  thanks- 
givings to  God,  by  whose  grace  they  were  enabled  to  over- 
come.    .     .     . 

"  Whereas  it  is  frequently  asserted  that  Protestant  Missions 
present  a  divided  front  to  those  outside,  and  create  confusion 
by  a  large  variety  of  inconsistent  teaching,  and  whereas  the 
minds  both  of  Christian  and  non- Christian  Chinese  are  in 
danger  of  being  thus  misled  into  an  exaggerated  estimate  of 
our  differences,  this  Centenary  Conference,  representing  all 
Protestant  Missions  at  present  working  in  China,  unanimously 
and  cordially  declares : 

"  That,  holding  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ments as  the  supreme  standard  of  faith  and  practice,  and  hold- 
ing firmly  the  primitive  Catholic  faith  summarized  in  the 
Apostles'  Creed  and  sufficiently  stated  in  the  Nicene  Creed; 
and  in  view  of  our  knowledge  of  each  other's  doctrinal  sym- 
bols, history,  work,  and  character,  we  gladly  recognize  our- 
selves as  already  one  body,  teaching  one  way  of  eternal  life, 
and  calling  men  into  one  holy  fellowship.     .     .     . 

"  We  frankly  recognize  that  we  differ  as  to  methods  of  ad- 
ministration and  Church  government;  that  some  among  us 
differ  from  others  as  to  the  administration  of  Baptism;  and 
that  there  are  some  differences  as  to  the  statement  of  the  doc- 
trine of  Predestination  or  the  Election  of  Grace.  But  we 
unite  in  holding  that  these  exceptions  do  not  invalidate  the  as- 
sertion of  our  real  unity  in  our  common  witness  to  the  Gospel 
of  the  grace  of  God. 

"  That,  in  planting  anew  the  Church  of  Christ  on  Chinese 
soil,  we  desire  only  to  plant  one  Holy  Catholic  Church,  under 
the  sole  control  of  the   Lord  Jesus  Christ,  governed  by  the 
Word  of  the   Living  God  and  led  by  His  guiding  Spirit." 
— Resolutions  of  Shanghai  Centenary  Conference,  igoj. 


LECTURE  III 
A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES 

IN  the  first  verse  of  the  twelfth  chapter  of 
Hebrews    the    author    of    that    epistle 
writes :     "  Wherefore,  seeing  we  also  are 
compassed  about  with  so  great  a  cloud  of 
witnesses,  let  us  lay  aside  every  weight,  and 
the  sin  which  doth  so  easily  beset  us,  and  let 
us  run  with  patience  the  race  that  is  set  be- 
fore us."     The  word  translated  witnesses  in 
the  first  clause  of  this  verse,  taken  in  con- 
nection with  the  figure  of  a  race,  would  seem 
to  refer  to  spectators  intently  observing  an 
athletic   contest.     We   may   note,   however, 
that  in  the  eleventh  chapter  the  word  is  used 
in  a  connection  which  seems  to  suggest  that 
it  also  refers  to  witnessing  in  the  sense  of 
testimony  rendered.     In  the  second  verse  of 
that  chapter  it  is  stated,  "  For  by  it  the  elders 
obtained  a  good  report,"  and  in  the  thirty- 
ninth  verse  it  reads,  "  And  these  all,  having 
105 


106     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

obtained  a  good  report."  In  both  instances 
the  original  word  translated  "  a  good  report  " 
is  from  the  same  root  as  the  one  which  is 
rendered  "  witnesses,"  in  the  first  verse  of  the 
twelfth  chapter,  and  from  the  same  root  our 
word  martyr  is  derived,  since  a  martyr  is 
primarily  a  witness  to  the  faith.  The  cloud 
of  witnesses  referred  to  may  very  properly  be 
those  who  having  testified  by  their  fidelity 
and  loyalty,  and  by  their  devoted  lives  of 
service,  and  having  many  of  them  sealed  their 
fealty  to  Christ  by  martyrdom,  and  thus 
"  obtained  a  good  report,"  are  represented 
in  picturesque  symbolism  as  looking  down 
upon  those  who  are  still  engaged  in  the 
struggle.  We  shall,  therefore,  venture  to 
use  the  expression  "cloud  of  witnesses"  as 
signifying  those  who  have  borne  witness  to  the 
faith.  We  seem  justified  in  this,  since  the 
entire  eleventh  chapter  of  Hebrews  recounts 
the  victories  and  the  heroic  testimony  of 
those  who  by  faith  "  subdued  kingdoms, 
wrought  righteousness,  obtained  promises, 
stopped  the  mouths  of  lions,  quenched  the 
violence  of  fire,   escaped  the   edge  of  the 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES       107 

sword,  out  of  weakness  were  made  strong, 
waxed  valiant  in  fight,  turned  to  flight  the 
armies  of  the  aliens."  This  Biblical  narrative 
refers  to  those  who  in  ancient  times  were 
faithful  witnesses  to  truth,  and  loyal  servants 
of  God.  Have  we  in  modern  times,  and 
especially  in  mission  fields,  converts  whose 
character,  trustworthiness,  and  fidelity  in 
service  will  bear  comparison  with  those  early 
heroes  of  the  faith.  In  other  words,  are  our 
modern  mission  converts  worth  winning? 
We  believe  that  they  are,  and  that  they  are 
fast  becoming  a  new  "  cloud  of  witnesses," 
many  of  whom  belong  to  our  own  gener- 
ation. 

A  new  eleventh  of  Hebrews  could  have 
been  written  many  times,  perhaps  in  every 
century  since  the  apostolic  age.  The  story 
of  heroic  fidelity  to  religious  conviction,  of 
true  and  unwavering  allegiance  to  Christ, 
constitutes  one  continuous  chain  of  testimony, 
extending  to  our  present  day.  It  is  too  long 
a  recital  to  sketch  even  in  outline  here,  and  it 
is,  moreover,  familiar  to  every  student  of 
Christian  history.     Our  attention  will  be  con- 


Io8    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

fined  rather  to  the  recent  chapter  which 
modern  missions  have  added  to  that  story  of 
heroic  devotion  and  sacrificial  obedience 
which  the  ages  have  recorded  concerning 
those  who  have  served  and  honoured  God. 
We  shall  further  supplement  this  by  asking 
your  attention  to  another  kind  of  witnessing, 
namely,  the  testimony  of  outside  observers  to 
the  success  and  value  of  missions  in  distant 
lands.  I  refer  to  statements  from  men  of 
high  positions  and  unquestioned  veracity, 
who  have  spoken  in  terms  of  admiration  and 
commendation  of  mission  work  in  foreign 
fields.  These  testimonies  have  now  ac- 
cumulated to  such  an  extent  that  goodly 
volumes  have  been  collated,  devoted  entirely 
to  recording  what  has  been  said.  Those 
whose  evidence  is  thus  quoted  are  fast  be- 
coming literally  a  "  cloud  of  witnesses,"  not 
only  as  onlookers,  but  as  ready  also  to  testify 
to  the  spiritual,  ethical,  and  humanitarian 
success  of  missions. 

Without  attempting  to  claim  other  than  an 
approximate  accuracy,  we  may  estimate  the 
number  of    Protestant    church-members    in 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        109 

mission  churches  at  the  present  time  as 
1,800,000,  not  including  those  converts  who 
have  died  in  the  faith  during  the  past 
century.  Out  of  this  "cloud  of  witnesses" 
we  may  glance  only  here  and  there  at  a 
personality,  chosen  either  from  among  the 
living  or  the  dead,  whose  life-story  happens 
to  have  found  its  way  into  mission  literature. 
We  would  not  be  understood  as  intimating 
that  the  testimony  of  all  these  nearly  two 
million  church-members  has  been  equally 
valuable  or  admirable  in  quality,  nor  would 
we  seek  to  hide  the  fact  that  a  certain  per- 
centage of  those  who  have  made  a  Christian 
profession  have  failed  to  honour  it.  There 
is  good  reason,  however,  for  the  assurance 
that  the  outcome  of  character  and  conduct  in 
mission  converts  has  been  as  a  rule  extremely 
creditable,  and  as  much  to  the  honour  of 
Christianity  as  we  are  accustomed  to  find  it 
among  professed  believers  in  Christendom. 

There  are  many  traits  of  religious  char- 
acter which  all  men  agree  in  respecting,  but 
we  may  select  four  aspects  of  a  Christian 
profession  which  are  regarded  as  especially 


IIO     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

worthy  of  honour,  and  whose  evidential  value 
ranks  high.  We  may  name  them  as  loyalty, 
sincerity,  sacrifice,  and  stability.  Converts 
who  are  loyal  to  Christ  and  His  truth,  in  the 
face  of  temptation  and  peril,  who  are  also 
sincere  in  their  conscientious  convictions,  be- 
lieving in  the  Gospel  for  its  own  sake,  with 
no  sordid  or  ignoble  motive,  who  are,  more- 
over, ready  to  suffer  loss,  to  endure  hardship, 
and  to  obey,  whatever  sacrifice  may  be  in- 
volved, and,  finally,  who  persist  with  un- 
wavering allegiance  and  unwearied  patience 
in  holding  fast  to  God's  Word  as  their  rule 
of  life,  may  by  general  consent  be  counted  as 
worthy  witnesses  to  the  power  of  the  Gospel. 
No  one  would  claim  that  all  mission  converts 
have  equally  fulfilled  these  conditions.  The 
tares  grow  with  the  wheat,  and  cannot  be 
safely  or  wisely  uprooted  until  the  harvest 
time. 

We  do  contend,  however,  that,  all  things 
considered,  the  spiritual  and  moral  record 
of  the  communicant  membership  of  native 
churches  in  mission  fields  will  not  suffer  by 
comparison  with  the  standard  of  Christian 


A  NEW  CLOUD   OF  WITNESSES        III 

living  in  our  home  churches.  Even  if  the 
proportion  of  the  lapsed  were  proved  to  be 
greater  in  mission  churches  than  at  home, 
though  there  are  no  convincing  data  for  con- 
ceding this,  a  sufficient  and  very  natural 
explanation  might  be  found  in  the  fact  that 
such  mission  converts  have  come  out  of 
gross  and  depressing  ignorance,  and  have 
known  only  a  heathen  environment,  with 
its  degeneracy  and  laxity.  In  the  apos- 
tolic churches  to  which  the  New  Testament 
epistles  were  addressed,  there  was  much 
genuine  piety  ;  yet  it  is  evident  that  vicious 
and  degenerate  tendencies  would  assert 
themselves  in  the  lives  of  many  of  their 
converts.  Let  the  tests  be  searchingly  ap- 
plied to  mission  converts,  but  not  more 
searchingly  or  exactingly  or  pitilessly  than 
we  would  apply  them  to  ourselves  or  to 
others  in  a  happy  and  helpful  environment, 
where  the  power  of  a  wholesome  public 
opinion,  and  the  sympathy  of  Christian  fel- 
lowship make  it  comparatively  easy  to  re- 
main firm  and  true  in  a  religious  life.  The 
Christianity  of  mission  fields  is  ready  to  be 


112     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

tested,  although  any  test  which  we  at  a  dis- 
tance are  able  to  make  must  be  on  a  basis  of 
imperfect  knowledge.  In  the  white  light  of 
the  great  assizes,  it  seems  to  those  who  have 
lived  among  native  Christians  that  the  "  Well 
done,  good  and  faithful  servant,"  may  be 
expected  to  greet  mission  converts  as  often 
as  any  other  class  of  Christians. 

During  the  past  century  the  noble  army  of 
martyrs  has  been  recruited  almost  entirely 
from  among  mission  converts,  or  from  mis- 
sionaries who  have  died  in  the  foreign  serv- 
ice. The  fifth  seal  in  the  Book  of  Revelation 
is  in  honour  of  martyrdom,  and  refers  ex- 
clusively to  "the  souls  of  them  that  were 
slain  for  the  Word  of  God."  This  is  the 
acme  of  loyalty ;  it  is  the  last  test  of  sin- 
cerity ;  it  is  the  limit  of  sacrifice,  and  the 
crowning  evidence  of  stability.  The  roll-call 
of  martyrs  has  been  increasing  with  every 
century  since  the  death  of  Stephen.  The 
modern  missionary  era  has  added  the  names 
of  many  servants  of  Christ  in  foreign  lands — 
Williams  and  the  Gordons  of  Erromanga, 
Patteson  of  Melanesia,  Hannington,  Smith, 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        1 13 

and  O'Neill,  of  Uganda,  the  martyr  bands  of 
Kucheng  and  Lienchow,  Chalmers  of  New 
Guinea,  and,  with  the  close  of  the  last  cen- 
tury, many  whose  earthly  home  was  in  China 
have  entered  heaven  crowned  with  victorious 
fortitude  and  sublime  devotion.  This  is  not 
so  much  a  matter  to  excite  our  astonishment 
so  far  as  our  missionaries  are  concerned  ;  they 
would  all  of  them  die  for  their  country,  and 
we  may  well  believe  that  they  would  die  also 
for  their  Lord. 

Let  us  turn  to  the  record  of  mission  con- 
verts, and  inquire  how  they  have  stood  the 
terrors  of  this  ordeal.  No  student  of  mis- 
sionary history  can  overlook  Madagascar, 
Uganda,  Persia,  Syria,  Asia  Minor,  New 
Guinea,  and  the  Pacific  Islands.  China  is 
still  fresh  in  our  memories,  and  not  alone  the 
one  hundred  and  eighty-eight  (including 
wives  and  children)  who  were  sacrificed  from 
the  ranks  of  Protestant  foreign  missionaries, 
and  the  forty-four  of  Roman  Catholic  con- 
nection, but  the  forty  thousand  native  Chris- 
tians, according  to  a  trustworthy  estimate, 
including  Roman  Catholics,  who  perished  in 


114     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

the  Boxer  uprising,  give  a  sublime  emphasis 
to  the  heroic  witness-bearing  of  one  of  our 
most  prominent  mission  fields.  The  Chris- 
tian Chinese  were  hunted,  harried,  tortured, 
and  slain,  with  every  accessory  of  heartless 
cruelty ;  yet  the  story  of  their  fidelity  has 
added  an  inspiring  chapter  to  Christian  his- 
tory. A  word,  a  sign,  a  motion,  an  abjura- 
tion recognized  as  merely  temporary,  an 
acceptance  of  a  false  certificate  from  the 
magistrate,  stating  that  they  had  recanted, 
would  have  saved  many  of  them.  Hundreds 
of  them  died  literally  "  not  accepting  deliver- 
ance," choosing  to  join  that  goodly  company 
on  high  "  who  came  through  great  tribula- 
tion, and  washed  their  robes  in  the  blood  of 
the  Lamb,"  rather  than  escape  by  any  easy 
device  of  outward  conformity. 

The  young  wife  of  one  of  the  native 
preachers  in  Manchuria,  when  she  faced 
death,  in  that  hour  of  peril  prayed,  "  Oh, 
Lord  Jesus,  give  me  courage  to  witness  for 
Thee,  until  the  end,"  and  when  asked  to 
burn  a  stick  of  incense  to  the  gods,  with  the 
promise  that  by  this  act  of  concession  her 


A  NEW  CLOUD   OF  WITNESSES        115 

life  would  be  saved,  she  replied,  "  Never." 
In  this  case  the  surrender  of  life  was  not 
exacted,  for,  happily,  her  courage  had  excited 
the  admiration  of  the  crowd,  and,  while  her 
persecutors  had  their  attention  turned  in  an- 
other direction,  she  succeeded  opportunely  in 
making  her  escape.  An  aged  Christian, 
named  Chiang,  when  seized  and  told  that 
he  must  die,  said  calmly:  "Very  well,  but 
first  give  me  a  little  time  to  pray."  He  fell 
upon  his  knees,  and  began,  "  Father,  forgive 
them,"  and  with  these  words  his  petition  was 
ended,  as  he  was  ruthlessly  murdered  on  the 
spot.  Men  were  sometimes  put  to  strange 
tests,  like  that  Chinese  Christian  before  whom 
a  circle  was  made  upon  the  floor,  with  a  cross 
drawn  within  it,  upon  which  he  was  com- 
manded to  spit.  He  refused,  and  was 
thereupon  immediately  ordered  away  to  ex- 
ecution. Another,  while  being  bound  to  a 
pillar  in  a  heathen  temple,  kept  on  preach- 
ing to  his  persecutors,  to  show  that  the 
Word  of  God  was  not  bound,  and  only  death 
finally  silenced  that  heroic  evangel.  A  young 
schoolboy,  when  commanded  to  worship  some 


Il6     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

idolatrous  tablets,  replied,  "  I  cannot  do  it," 
and  survived  his  bold  refusal  only  for  a  mo- 
ment. The  stories  of  torture  connected  with 
the  Boxer  persecutions  are  too  terrible  to  re- 
peat in  detail ;  many  were  burned  alive, 
beaten  to  death,  dismembered,  disembowelled, 
drowned,  cut  to  pieces  inch  by  inch  under 
the  sharp  blade  of  a  straw-cutter,  hurled  from 
precipices,  saturated  with  oil  and  set  on  fire, 
or  buried  alive. 

There  are,  moreover,  accounts  of  faithful 
Christian  helpers  and  servants  who  were 
done  to  death  rather  than  betray  the  hiding- 
places  of  the  missionaries.  A  prominent 
Christian,  with  his  mother,  sister,  and  wife, 
were  bundled  into  a  cart,  and  taken  to  a 
vacant  lot  outside  of  the  village,  singing 
meanwhile,  "  He  Leadeth  Me,"  as  they  thus 
journeyed  to  their  death.  One  by  one  they 
were  slain,  each  in  turn  refusing  to  recant. 
There  is  a  certain  realism  about  the  faith  of 
some  of  these  Chinese  Christians,  which  is 
both  touching  and  inspiring,  as  in  the  case 
of  that  member  of  the  North  Church  at 
Peking — Hsieh  by  name, — who  insisted  upon 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        117 

donning  his  best  clothes,  as  if  for  a  festal 
occasion,  when  he  was  led  out  to  his  mar- 
tyrdom. "  I  am  to  enter  the  palace  of  the 
King,"  he  said,  "  and  the  best  clothes  I  have 
should  be  used."  No  wonder  the  Chinese 
dug  out  his  heart,  to  see  if  they  could  dis- 
cover the  secret  of  his  courage.  The  early 
martyrs  of  Christian  history  have  proved  a 
valuable  asset  to  Christianity,  and  to  the 
Christian  Church  of  our  day  the  heroism  of 
Chinese  Christians  has  become  a  spiritual 
treasure,  the  value  of  which  it  would  be 
difficult  fully  to  estimate. 

We  must  not  linger  over  this  story  of 
martyr  testimony.  There  is  also  the  witness 
of  devoted  lives  of  loyal  service,  of  moral 
victory,  of  meekness  under  provocation,  of 
gentleness  and  humility  in  the  presence  of 
revilings,  of  patience  in  suffering,  and  of 
resignation  in  sorrow.  There  are  trans- 
formed characters,  restored  souls,  luminous 
records,  shining  examples,  consecrated  lives ; 
there  are  stories  of  simplicity,  sacrifice, 
fidelity,  heroism,  self-denial,  unassuming 
piety,    and    loving   toil.     There  are  multi- 


Il8     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

tudes  of  Christian  witnesses  in  modern 
mission  lands,  whose  lives  have  been  gar- 
landed with  the  graces,  the  joys,  the  hopes, 
and  the  virtues  of  the  Gospel.  Many  who 
have  lived  worthily  have  died  the  death  of 
the  righteous,  and  their  reward  is  written  on 
high. 

We  need  not  delve  into  older  mission  rec- 
ords, and  revive  the  well-known  stories  of  Af- 
ricaner, Crowther,  and  Tiyo  Soga,  in  Africa, 
of  Krishna  Pal  in  India,  of  Kothahbyu  in 
Burma,  of  Epeteneto  in  the  New  Hebrides, 
and  Pomare  in  Tahiti.  These  examples,  with 
Neesima  of  Japan,  Asaad-esh-Shidiak  of 
Mount  Lebanon,  Kapiolani  of  Hawaii,  Clem- 
ent Marau  of  Melanesia,  and  many  others, 
have  served  a  useful  purpose  in  former 
years.  We  have  now  fresh  material  to 
bring  forward ;  men  and  women,  many  of 
them  of  our  own  generation,  whose  record 
as  witnesses  is  equally  inspiring  and  effective. 
We  shall  select  only  a  few  bright  person- 
alities from  a  luminous  cloud  of  those  who 
have  witnessed  well  for  Christ  in  the  midst 
of    a    hostile    and    harassing  environment. 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        119 

Prominent  among  them  is  Khama,  the  good 
South  African  king,  a  foe  to  intemperance 
and  polygamy,  and  a  lover  of  peace  and 
justice.  There  is  Daudi  Kasagama,  the 
King  of  Toro,  a  country  lying  west  of 
Uganda,  the  royal  evangelist,  and  the  friend 
of  social  order  and  virtue,  who  writes  that 
he  wants  very  much  to  arrange  all  the 
matters  of  his  country  for  Christ  only,  "  that 
all  my  people,"  to  quote  his  own  words, 
"  may  understand  that  Jesus  Christ,  He  is 
the  Saviour  of  all  countries,  and  that  He  is 
the  King  of  Kings."  In  Uganda  is  its 
Prime  Minister,  Apolo  Kagwa,  the  Christian 
statesman,  and  on  the  West  Coast  of  Africa 
we  meet  with  the  pastors  Marshall  and 
Anaman,  Sir  Samuel  Lewis,  and  Bishop 
Phillips,  the  two  latter  recently  deceased — all 
men  of  distinction  and  fine  Christian  records. 
These  are  strong  witnesses,  gathered  out  of 
the  depths  of  African  savagery,  several  of 
them  from  the  ranks  of  those  who  have  had 
to  face  the  alluring  temptations  of  power, 
and  to  beat  down  the  fierce  assaults  of  per- 
sonal pride  and  tribal  hostility. 


120    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

In  the  Congo  State — it  seems  a  mockery 
just  now  to  call  it  "Free" — there  has  re- 
cently died  a  native  evangelist,  the  son  of 
a  chief,  named  Paul,  the  story  of  whose 
conversion  and  faithful  service  is  full  of 
witnessing  power.  His  early  education  was 
secured  largely  through  his  own  persevering 
diligence,  and,  after  a  course  of  training  as 
an  evangelist,  he  chose  as  his  field  of  labour 
a  large  town  which  had  for  ten  years  stoutly 
resisted  the  entrance  of  the  Gospel.  In  two 
years,  in  spite  of  hostility  and  threats  of 
violence,  he  had  gathered  a  congregation 
of  several  hundred.  Finally,  when  this 
church  was  strong  enough  to  care  for  itself, 
he  left  it  in  charge  of  volunteer  workers,  and 
journeyed  from  outpost  to  outpost,  planting 
the  seeds  of  other  permanent  churches.  His 
enthusiasm  was  contagious,  and  several  of 
his  converts  followed  his  example. 

On  the  island  of  Madagascar,  off  the  east 
coast  of  Africa,  there  died  in  1905  a  native 
pastor,  whom  Mr.  James  Sibree,  of  the 
London  Missionary  Society,  calls  "my  old 
friend  and  fellow  worker  ;  one  of  the  few  re- 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        121 

maining  links  with  the  times  of  early  persecu- 
tion." His  name  was  Rainitrimo,  and  he  was 
converted  about  the  year  1830,  early  in  the 
reign  of  Ranavalona  I,  the  persecuting 
queen.  During  those  dark  days  he  was 
fined,  imprisoned,  sold  as  a  slave,  put 
through  the  poison  ordeal,  and  finally  con- 
demned to  labour  without  pay  for  many 
years  in  the  construction  of  the  enormous 
tomb  of  the  Prime  Minister's  family,  at 
Isotry,  and  was  not  set  free  until  the  death  of 
the  queen,  in  1861.  He  served  after  that  as 
a  native  pastor  for  forty-one  years,  and 
lately  died,  at  the  age  of  ninety-three.  His 
Christian  character  "  developed  and  deepened 
with  age,"  his  public  prayers  were  full  of 
earnestness  and  trustful  confidence  in  God's 
nearness  and  God's  love,  while  his  sermons 
were  brief  and  to  the  point,  aiming  with 
supreme  desire  to  glorify  God  and  save  men. 
"The  last  time  I  met  the  old  veteran," 
writes  Mr.  Sibree,  "I  was  going  down  the 
hill  to  preach  at  Amparibe  ;  he  was  walking 
up  a  rather  steep  ascent  to  morning  service, 
bright  and   cheerful,  as   I  had  ever  known 


122     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

him,  and  bearing  his  two  and  ninety  years 
with  but  little  sign  of  old  age  ;  but  now  he 
has  gone  to  join  his  friends  who  not  only  suf- 
fered, but  died  for  Christ  many  years  ago." 
The  first  martyr  of  them  all  in  Madagascar 
was  Rasalama,  who  was  executed  in  1837. 
Her  great  sin  was  that  she  prayed  to  the 
Christian  God,  and  when  led  out  to  execu- 
tion she  still  begged  for  one  more  opportunity 
to  pray,  and,  kneeling  on  the  ground,  calmly 
committed  her  spirit  into  the  hands  of  her 
Redeemer,  and  while  in  this  attitude  she  was 
speared  to  death.  Thus  began  the  grim 
story  of  what  they  are  accustomed  to  call  the 
"  killing  times  in  Madagascar." 

South  of  the  equator  seems  to  be  a  region 
of  pathless  oceans.  From  Madagascar  we 
may  journey  due  east  over  a  vast  waste  of 
waters,  along  the  track  of  that  vague  bound- 
ary line  between  Asia  and  Oceania,  through 
Torres  Strait  into  the  South  Pacific,  with  its 
populous  island  world.  From  these  realms 
of  primitive  savagery  we  can  gather  numer- 
ous witnesses  for  Christ,  whose  record  is  full 
of  faith  and  courage.     We  cannot  pass  New 


A  NEW  CLOUD   OF  WITNESSES        1 23 

Guinea  without  recalling  its  noble  mission- 
aries, Macfarlane,  Chalmers,  Lawes,  Abel, 
and  others,  nor  can  we  fail  to  pay  our  tribute 
of  respect  and  honour  to  those  faithful  native 
preachers  and  teachers  from  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  mostly  from  the  Samoan  and  Loyalty 
groups,  who  have  responded  so  willingly  to 
the  call  for  help  in  the  perilous  and  trying 
pioneer  work  of  opening  New  Guinea  to  the 
Gospel.  They  were  converts  in  the  missions 
of  the  Wesleyans  and  the  London  Mission- 
ary Society  in  the  South  Seas,  and  in  all,  in- 
cluding their  wives,  about  three  hundred  of 
them  have  entered  New  Guinea  as  native 
missionaries.  Of  this  number  no  less  than 
one  hundred  and  twenty  have  perished  with 
fever,  or  suffered  a  violent  death. 

Out  of  a  heredity  of  cannibalism  and 
bloody  tribal  wars  came  Gucheng,  a  convert 
to  the  Gospel  in  the  island  of  Lifu.  He  was 
taught  by  the  missionaries,  and  when,  in  187 1, 
Dr.  Macfarlane,  then  in  Lifu,  was  delegated 
to  open  a  mission  in  New  Guinea,  the  call 
was  given  for  volunteers  from  the  native 
converts    to   accompany   him.      The   entire 


124    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

native  pastorate  of  Lifu,  and  all  the  students 
in  the  mission  seminary,  offered  themselves  for 
the  service.  Gucheng  and  one  other  were  se- 
lected. The  story  of  his  pioneer  devotion  is  full 
of  heroism.  It  was  to  him  and  to  many  of  the 
other  native  teachers  who  afterwards  engaged 
in  the  service,  a  foreign  missionary  sphere  of 
work — distant,  unknown,  perilous ;  yet  there 
was  no  break  in  the  steady  procession  of 
volunteers.  In  two  years  after  the  first 
entrance,  that  little  mission  cemetery  at  Port 
Moresby,  in  New  Guinea,  had  eighteen 
graves  of  teachers  who  had  yielded  up  their 
lives  in  consecrated  loyalty.  Gucheng  was 
ever  ready  for  any  duty,  however  threaten- 
ing the  outlook,  and  would  join  any  exploring 
expedition  into  dangerous  regions  to  search 
for  a  more  healthful  and  suitable  locality  for 
mission  stations.  Finally,  when  it  became 
evident  that  the  permanent  evangelistic  and 
teaching  force  must  be  recruited  from  the 
natives  of  New  Guinea,  rather  than  from 
South  Sea  aliens,  he  became  the  head  of  a 
Papuan  Training  Institution,  and  in  this  posi- 
tion he  aided  in  educating  native  students  to 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        1 25 

continue  the  work  which  he  and  his  comrades 
were  not  physically  fitted  to  perform.  While 
establishing  a  new  mission  station,  to  be 
manned  by  his  pupils,  he  was  suddenly 
stricken  with  fever,  and  died.  His  name  is 
hardly  mentioned  in  Christendom,  nor  is  that 
of  Ruatoka,  another  South  Sea  native  of  ex- 
ceptional value  to  the  Mission,  yet  their 
record  as  witnesses  for  Christ,  and  servants 
in  the  extension  of  His  kingdom,  is  not  one 
whit  less  worthy  of  admiration  than  that  of 
our  best  known  missionary  heroes. 

Some  fifteen  hundred  miles  due  southeast 
from  New  Guinea,  across  the  Coral  Sea,  is 
the  group  of  Loyalty  Islands,  the  scene  of 
the  life-work  of  Pao,  known  as  the  Apostle  of 
Lifu.  He,  too,  was  in  foreign  missionary 
service,  as  he  was  born  in  Polynesia,  some 
three  thousand  miles  to  the  eastward  of 
Lifu.  With  faith  and  courage,  and  a  conse- 
crated spirit,  he  went  to  that  island  as  a  pioneer 
evangelist  among  its  wild  cannibals.  "  Have 
you  a  message  for  me  from  the  Great 
Spirit  ?  "  inquired  the  powerful  King  of  Lifu, 
as  the  young  stranger,  who  had  landed  alone 


126     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

on  that  dangerous  shore,  was  brought  before 
him.  "Yes,"  said  Pao,  "and  here  it  is," 
producing  his  Rarotongan  New  Testament. 
There  he  lived,  amid  perils  and  discourage- 
ments, until  in  later  years  he  was  called 
home,  leaving  a  native  Christian  community 
to  mourn  him,  and  having  opened  the  way 
for  the  London  Mission  to  establish  itself  in 
the  island.  So  mighty  in  its  impressiveness 
was  his  witness  to  the  Gospel  that  many  years 
after  his  death  the  foreign  and  native  com- 
munities of  Lifu  united  in  raising  a  monu- 
ment to  commemorate  his  life  and  work. 

Had  we  time  to  inspect  this  island  world 
more  in  detail — to  visit  the  Fiji,  Tonga, 
Samoan,  Hervey,  and  Society  groups,  and 
possibly  in  returning  westward  through  the 
northern  seas  to  call  at  the  Micronesian  and 
Melanesian  clusters,  we  should  find  witness- 
ing thousands,  who,  like  the  elders  of  old, 
have  "  obtained  a  good  report."  Every  vil- 
lage in  the  eighty  inhabited  islands  of  the 
Fiji  group  has  its  church,  and,  all  told,  there 
are  about  nine  hundred  places  of  worship 
where  the  Fijians  maintain  the  world's  record 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        1 27 

as  to  the  percentage  of  regular  attendants 
upon  church  services,  ninety-five  out  of  every 
hundred  of  the  native  residents  going  to  church 
with  conscientious  fidelity.  Before  the  Gos- 
pel entered,  at  the  hands  of  the  English 
Wesleyans,  in  1835,  the  Fiji  group  was  such 
a  loathsome  hotbed  of  vice  and  cruelty  that 
it  has  been  appropriately  called  "  an  ante- 
chamber to  the  bottomless  pit." 

We  must  now  hasten  on  to  Japan,  and 
while  not  forgetting  to  mention  with  respect 
the  name  of  Neesima,  we  will  select  more 
recent  witnesses  who  may  be  justly  regarded 
as  worthy  of  our  attention.  Perhaps  the 
best  known  among  them  are  the  late  Hon- 
ourable Kenkichi  Kataoka,  the  Christian 
statesman  and  man  of  prayer,  Ishii,  the 
philanthropist,  Hara,  the  friend  of  discharged 
prisoners,  Sawayama,  pastor  and  evangelist, 
who  has  been  called  the  "  Modern  Paul  of 
Japan,"  Honda,  the  educationalist,  and  Mo- 
toda,  the  faithful  rector,  and  head  of  a  gov- 
ernment school,  who  stipulated  in  accepting 
the  latter  office  that  he  should  not  be  pro- 
hibited from  teaching  Christianity,  and  thus 


128     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF   MISSIONS 

witnessing  to  his  Master.  Dr.  Honda  has 
been  recently  chosen  as  the  first  native 
bishop  of  the  Methodist  Church  in  Japan. 
We  may  mention  also  Messrs.  Ishimoto, 
Ebara,  Nitobe,  Miyama,  Matsuyama,  Okuno, 
Ibuka,  Tomeoka,  Ando,  Miyake,  Kozaki, 
Tamura,  Harada,  Uchimura,  Sato,  Uemura, 
Niwa,  Shimada,  Ebina,  Miyagawa,  Watanabe, 
Makino,  Hirata,  Yamamoto,  Haraiwa,  Shim- 
omura,  Homma,  and  many  others,  whose 
witnessing  lives  would  be  worthy  of  our 
attention  had  we  time  to  dwell  upon  them. 

In  Korea  there  are  many  witnesses,  and 
the  latest  reports  from  that  field  indicate  that 
multitudes  are  embracing  Christianity.  The 
desire  to  enter  the  Christian  Church  and 
know  more  fully  the  love  of  Christ  and  the 
power  of  the  Gospel  seems  to  be  phenom- 
enal. Some  one  who  has  just  been  there 
describes  them  as  a"  broken-hearted  nation 
turning  to  Christ."  The  statements  of  Mr. 
W.  T.  Ellis,  which  I  have  already  noted,  call 
attention  to  the  very  exceptional  opportunities 
there  to  win  souls  for  the  kingdom,  and  recent 
letters  from  the  field  speak  of  revival  scenes 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        1 29 

which  are  evidence  of  intense  feeling  and 
deep  spiritual  experience.  It  is  possible  that 
Korea  may  become  a  witnessing  nation  of 
special  value  to  Christianity. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  the  testimony 
of  Chinese  martyrs,  but  there  are  many 
whose  lives  without  the  seal  of  martyrdom 
have  witnessed  faithfully  for  Christ.  There 
is  Chang,  the  blind  man,  who  walked  a  hun- 
dred miles  to  Dr.  Christie's  hospital  at  Mouk- 
den,  and  while  there  received  the  Gospel 
gladly.  He  soon  entered  upon  an  evangelis- 
tic service  of  great  success,  and,  visiting 
from  place  to  place,  won  souls  wherever  he 
went.  There  was  Wang,  another  Manchu- 
rian  evangelist,  whose  life  has  been  written 
by  Dr.  Ross.  It  strengthens  one's  faith  to 
read  of  his  devotion,  his  liberality,  his  read- 
iness to  endure  hardship,  his  patience  and 
tact  in  meeting  opposition,  his  ingenuity  in 
interesting  his  hearers,  and  his  fidelity  to  the 
Gospel  message.  Instead  of  taking  offense 
at  opposition  and  insult,  he  was  depressed 
rather  if  his  preaching  was  received  calmly  or 
with  no  signs  of  irritation,  and  was  inclined 


130     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

to  blame  himself  for  some  supposed  unfaith- 
fulness as  the  probable  cause  of  such  a  peace- 
ful attitude  on  the  part  of  the  powers  of 
darkness.  In  his  earlier  years,  before  his 
conversion,  he  was  much  addicted  to  the  use 
of  opium,  and  the  poison  was  never  fully 
eliminated  from  his  system,  so  that  his  work 
was  often  done  while  suffering  from  great 
weakness  of  body ;  but  so  long  as  he  could 
stand  upon  his  feet,  he  was  a  faithful  witness, 
and  finally  he  died  speaking  of  Christ  with 
his  last  breath. 

Pastor  Chiu  of  Amoy,  where  the  English 
Presbyterians  have  a  mission,  was  converted 
at  the  age  of  twelve,  entered  the  ministry  at 
twenty,  and  served  with  unwearied  zeal, 
much  of  the  time  in  difficult  pioneer  work. 
His  enthusiasm  never  failed  him,  and  he  be- 
came popular  with  all  classes  ;  his  intellec- 
tual force  and  heart  power  made  him  a  per* 
sona  grata  among  the  literati,  the  officials, 
and  the  people.  While  the  Church  in  China 
produces  such  men  as  Pastor  Chiu,  we  may 
be  confident  that  its  witnessing  power  will 
never  fail.     We  read  further  of  a  certain 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        131 

Pastor  Chia,  up  in  North  China,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  American  Board  Mission,  a 
portly,  dignified,  impressive  personality,  who 
stands  six  feet  in  height,  and  has  charge  of 
forty  outstations  in  the  Shantung  Province. 
Every  native  Christian  in  his  district  looks  to 
him  as  a  sympathetic  friend  and  adviser. 
After  the  Boxer  troubles  he  it  was  who  was 
commissioned  to  settle  the  indemnity  claims 
for  the  Christians  of  that  region,  and  he  went 
through  the  ordeal  to  the  satisfaction  of  all, 
and  with  absolute  honesty  in  his  accounts. 
His  witness  was  characterized  by  love,  fidel- 
ity, brotherly  kindness,  and  unblemished  in- 
tegrity. 

At  Amoy  also  we  find  the  record  of  an- 
other pastor,  who  served  there  forty  years,  in 
connection  with  the  Reformed  Church  Mis- 
sion. The  Rev.  lap  Han-cheong  was  or- 
dained in  1864,  being  among  the  very  first 
natives  then  set  apart  for  the  ministry  in 
China.  His  fortieth  anniversary  to  the  pas- 
torate was  celebrated  by  the  presentation  to 
him  of  four  banners,  each  one  seven  feet  in 
length,  made  of  crimson  and  blue  silk,  and 


132     THE  NEW   HOROSCOPE  OF   MISSIONS 

suitably  inscribed  with  square  yards  of  esteem 
and  loving  appreciation.  The  occasion  was 
further  marked  by  a  substantial  contribution 
toward  a  memorial  fund  in  his  honour,  to  be 
used  for  missionary  purposes,  in  commemo- 
ration of  his  life-work.  Forty  years  ago 
there  were  only  two  church  organizations  in 
all  that  region,  and  no  native  pastors.  To- 
day there  are  thirty-eight  pastors  and  eighty 
churches,  fifty-three  of  them  being  self-sup- 
porting. The  labours  of  this  faithful  native 
pastor  have  no  doubt  had  much  to  do  in 
promoting  this  advance.  Pastor  Hsi's  bi- 
ography, written  by  Mrs.  Taylor,  has  made 
us  conversant  with  a  singularly  strong  and 
heroic  witness  for  Christ.  While  preparing 
this  lecture  I  have  become  acquainted  with  a 
little  volume  by  Mr.  W.  P.  Bentley,  entitled 
"  Illustrious  Chinese  Christians." *  It  con- 
tains brief  biographical  sketches,  either  writ- 
ten by  missionaries,  or  based  upon  data  fur- 
nished from  the  field,  of  twenty-two  natives, 
who  in  Christian  character  and  loyal  service 

1  Published  by  The  Standard  Publishing  Company,  Cincin- 
nati, Ohio,  1906. 


A  NEW   CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        1 33 

furnish  an  example  of  witnessing  fidelity 
which  is  not  only  creditable  to  China,  but  an 
honour  to  the  Christian  name. 

In  Siam  we  find  the  brief  but  noble  record 
of  the  Rev.  Boon  Boon-Itt,  whose  life-story  is 
told  in  a  pamphlet  issued  by  the  Presbyterian 
Board  of  Foreign  Missions.  He  was  edu- 
cated in  this  country,  at  Williams  College 
and  Auburn  Theological  Seminary,  and  on 
his  return  to  Siam  was  inducted  into  a  re- 
sponsible pastorate  at  Bangkok.  He  entered 
upon  his  duties  there  with  alacrity,  giving 
earnest  attention  to  the  spiritual  interests  of 
the  young  men  of  the  city.  His  success  in 
this  special  sphere  reminds  one  of  the  work 
of  Henry  Drummond  among  the  young  men 
of  his  day.  The  early  death  of  Mr.  Boon-Itt 
was  a  great  sorrow  to  many  friends  in  this 
country,  as  well  as  in  Siam.  He  seemed  to 
be  just  on  the  threshold  of  a  long  and  useful 
life,  but  his  witness  for  Christ,  though  brief, 
was  inflexible,  strenuous,  and  true. 

Dr.  Bunker  of  Burma  has  told  us,  in  a 
biography  which  he  has  published,  the  story 
of    Soo    Thah,    the    indefatigable   preacher 


134    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

and  temperance  advocate.  It  is  related  that 
he  once  succeeded  in  inducing  an  entire 
village  to  abandon  intoxicants,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  one  rich  old  resident,  who  per- 
sisted in  distilling  and  drinking  rice  whiskey, 
and  placing  the  temptation  in  the  way  of 
the  young  people  around  him.  After  much 
persuasion,  this  upper-class  sinner  finally 
consented  to  yield  to  solicitation,  and  give 
up  his  evil  traffic.  It  happened  that  he  had 
a  considerable  quantity  of  rice  and  corn  on 
hand  already  boiled,  mixed  with  yeast,  and 
in  process  of  fermentation.  Rather  than  des- 
troy this  valuable  stock,  he  fed  it  all  to  his 
pigs,  with  tragic  dynamic  effect.  This  start- 
ling result  suggested  to  the  alert  mind  of 
Soo  Thah  a  pungent  text,  which  in  the  spirit 
of  a  homiletical  opportunism,  not  altogether 
unknown  elsewhere,  he  used  with  telling 
effect  to  enforce  his  next  temperance  ser- 
mon. The  witness  of  this  brave  man  in- 
cluded a  perilous  attempt  to  evangelize  a 
savage  tribe,  where  no  entrance  to  the  Gos- 
pel had  ever  been  allowed.  Success  crowned 
his  efforts,  and  the  victory  over  superstition 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        135 

and  hostility  was  complete.  It  was  given  to 
him  subsequently  to  be  a  leader  in  kindling 
the  spirit  of  national  unity  among  the  Karens, 
and  in  allying  them  with  the  British  Gov- 
ernment at  the  time  of  the  Burmese  rebel- 
lion. His  witness  was  thus  a  strong  one  in 
behalf  of  the  Gospel  as  a  saving  power,  and 
also  in  the  promotion  of  social  order  and 
national  progress. 

We  must  hasten  now  to  India,  where 
many  faithful  and  trustworthy  witnesses  pre- 
sent themselves  as  we  scan  the  records  of 
Indian  Christianity.  Krishna  Mohun  Baner- 
jea,  Ram  Chandra  Bose,  Lai  Bihari  Day, 
and  Nehemiah  Goreh,  may  all  be  regarded 
as  representative  Christian  apologists.  Baba 
Padmanji,  Thakur  Dass,  N.  V.  Tilak,  Rallia 
Ram,  Navalkar,  Joseph  David,  Samuel  Paul, 
T.  K.  Chatter ji,  Dr.  Ahmed  Shah,  Abdullah 
Athim,  and  others,  stand  high  among  native 
Christian  authors.  Abdul  Masih,  Abdul  Rah- 
man, Imad-ud-Din  (noted  for  his  Biblical 
scholarship),  Safdar  Ali,  and  Jani  Alii,  are 
prominent  Christian  witnesses  from  the  ranks 
of   Islam.     There   are   many   native  writers 


136     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

whose  witness  to  Christ  has  been  embodied 
in  devotional  hymns,  some  of  them  of  un- 
usual beauty.  Jacob  Biswas,  in  Bengali ; 
Sastri,  in  Tamil ;  Karmarkar,  Tilak,  and 
Sangle,  in  Marathi;  Safdar  AH,  in  Urdu; 
with  K.  M.  Banerjea,  Goreh,  Navalkar,  Bose, 
and  Day,  as  well,  are  all  representative  and 
gifted  hymnists.  Many  learned  natives  have 
shared  with  distinction  in  the  enormous  la- 
bours of  Bible  translation  in  India,  as  Arch- 
deacon Koshi  Koshi,  in  Malayalam ;  the 
Rev.  D.  Anamtam,  and  the  Rev.  P.  Jaga- 
nadhan,  in  Telugu ;  Baba  Padmanji,  and 
G.  R.  Navalkar,  in  Marathi ;  Tara  Chand,  in 
Urdu ;  Shem  Sahu,  in  Uriya ;  and  Imam 
Masih,  in  Bengali.  There  are  numerous  pas- 
tors and  evangelists,  like  Messrs.  Golaknath, 
Pestonji,  Sheshadri,  M.  N.  Bose,  D.  L.  Joshi, 
Devasagayam,  Chatterjee,  W.  T.  Satthia- 
nadhan,  Khisti,  Naoroji,  Devadasan,  and 
John  Williams,  the  latter  among  the  wild 
Waziris.  These  men,  and  many  others,  have 
devoted  their  lives  to  a  diligent  testimony 
concerning  Christ  and  His  Gospel.  One  of 
those  just  mentioned,  the  Rev.  Dhanjibhai 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        137 

Naoroji,  has  recently  celebrated  the  Jubilee  of 
his   Christian  service.     In  a  document  pre- 
sented to  him  on  that  occasion,  it  is  stated : 
"  You  were  the  first  and  foremost  of  all  the 
Parsi   converts   to   come   out  and  join   the 
Church  of  Christ,  and  though  your  path  lay 
through  many  trials  and  persecutions,  these 
did  not  daunt  your  courage.    Through  God's 
grace  you  stood  firm,  to  be  a  glorious  wit- 
ness for  Him  in  this  land."    There  are  states- 
men and  men  of  culture,  like  Sir  Harnum 
Singh,  who  represented  the  Indian  Christian 
community  at  the  coronation  of  Edward  VII. 
In  this  list  a  conspicuous  place  must  be  as- 
signed to  that  eminent  Christian,  and  accom- 
plished government  official,  Mr.  Kali  Charan 
Banurji,  deceased,  we  regret  to  say,  since  his 
name  was   here  inserted.     We  might  name 
also  as  worthy  witnesses  and  public  men  of 
distinction,  Dewan  Bahadur  N.  Subrahman- 
yam,  Dr.  Pulney  Andy,  N.  G.  Welinkar,  Rai 
Bahadur  Maya  Das,  and  others. 

There  are  professors  and  educationalists, 
as  Professor  Ram  Chandra  of  Delhi,  Professor 
H.  L.  Mukerji  of  Bareilly,  Professor  Golak 


138     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Nath  Chatter ji  of  Lahore,  and  the  lamented 
Samuel  Satthianadhan,  LL.  D.,  late  Professor 
of  Mental  and  Moral  Science  in  the  Presidency 
College,  Madras.  The  personality  of  Dr.  Sat- 
thianadhan is  known  to  many  in  England 
and  in  this  country,  as  during  his  recent  visit 
to  America  he  delivered  a  course  of  lectures 
at  several  theological  seminaries,  includ- 
ing McCormick,  on  "Indian  Philosophical 
Systems  as  Related  to  Christianity."  No 
one  who  met  him  could  fail  to  note  the 
gentleness  and  geniality  of  his  personal  ad- 
dress, the  accuracy  and  extent  of  his  scholar- 
ship, the  fine  tone  of  Christian  courtesy  in 
his  demeanour,  his  loyalty  to  evangelical 
truth,  and  the  presence  of  strong  traits  of 
character,  which,  combined  with  religious 
sincerity,  made  him  a  most  attractive  ex- 
ample of  what  we  may  expect  in  educated 
Indian  Christians.  His  witness  to  Christ, 
and  to  the  ennobling  power  of  the  Gospel, 
was  of  distinct  value,  here  in  America  as  well 
as  in  India,  and  we  all  have  a  finer  ideal  of 
the  possibilities  of  Christian  character,  and 
of  the  witness-bearing  power  of  Indian  Chris- 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        1 39 

tianity  from  having  met  this  winsome  dis- 
ciple, even  though  our  intercourse  with  him 
may  have  been  but  casual  and  transient. 

We  should  not  fail  to  name,  moreover,  in 
this  connection  some  representative  Indian 
women  who  are  worthy  of  our  respect  and 
admiration.  Among  them  we  may  mention 
Krupabai,  the  gifted  writer,  Ramabai,  the 
philanthropist  of  world-wide  fame,  Lady 
Harnum  Singh,  the  Sorabjis,  Miss  Lilivati 
Singh,  Miss  C.  M.  Bose,  Miss  S.  Chucker- 
butty,  the  Chatter jees,  Mrs.  Shome,  Mrs. 
Bauboo,  and  Mrs.  Satthianadhan,  the  accom- 
plished editor  of  The  Indian  Ladies'  Maga- 
zine, These,  with  others  who  might  be 
mentioned,  are  witnesses  of  a  high  order  to 
the  gracious  influence  of  Christianity. 

The  witnessing  power  of  multitudes  gath- 
ered into  the  Christian  fold  from  the  ranks 
of  Indian  outcasts  should  by  no  means  be 
overlooked.  The  Pariah  converts,  pitiful  in 
their  former  degradation  and  suffering,  be- 
come evidential  trophies  of  the  power  and 
grace  of  the  Gospel.  The  high  caste  Hindu 
himself  often  wonders  at  the  change  which  is 


140    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF   MISSIONS 

wrought  by  conversion,  and  is  deeply  im- 
pressed with  the  gladdening,  hope-inspiring, 
self-respecting,  efficacy  of  Christian  enlight- 
enment, so  energizing  morally,  and  so  trans- 
forming socially,  among  a  sunken  and  seem- 
ingly doomed  class.  Distinguished  Brahmans 
in  high  official  position  are  recognizing  the 
fact  that  something  is  being  done  for  the 
outcast  element  which  is  altogether  new  in 
Indian  history.  Its  witnessing  power  is  irre- 
sistible. Outcast  converts  of  Christianity 
may  yet  become  a  "  cloud  of  witnesses " 
whose  testimony  to  the  uplifting  helpfulness 
of  the  Gospel  will  stir  the  heart  of  India.1 

1In  a  recent  report  to  the  native  Prince  of  Travancore, 
India,  a  Brahman  census  commissioner  paid  the  following 
tribute  to  Christian  missions  and  native  Christian  converts : 

"  The  heroism  of  raising  the  low  from  the  slough  of  degra- 
dation and  debasement  is  an  element  of  civilization  unknown 
to  ancient  India.  But  for  the  Christian  missionaries  in  the 
country  these  humble  orders  would  forever  remain  unraised. 
The  Brahman  community  of  Southern  India  is  not  doing  for 
the  lower  classes  what  the  casteless  Britisher  is  doing  for  them. 
The  credit  of  the  philanthropy  of  going  to  the  houses  of  the 
low  and  distressed  and  the  dirty,  and  putting  the  shoulder  to 
the  wheel  of  depraved  humanity,  belongs  to  the  Christian.  It 
is  a  glory  reserved  to  this  century  of  human  progress,  the  epoch 
of  the  happy  commingling  of  the  civilization  of  the  West  with 
that  of  the  East." 


A  NEW  CLOUD   OF  WITNESSES        141 

Passing  now  very  hastily  to  lands  largely 
under  Moslem  rule,  we  find  in  Syria  the  stren- 
uous and  outspoken  witness  of  Michial 
Meshakah,  of  Butrus  Bistany,  of  Michial 
Araman,  of  John  Abcarius,  of  Ibrahim  Sarkis, 
and  Rizzook  Berbary.  In  Persia,  Deacon 
Abraham,  the  philanthropist,  and  Mirza  Ibra- 
him, the  martyr,  have  added  their  valued  wit- 
ness to  the  transforming  power  of  the  Gospel. 
Throughout  Turkey  there  are  scores  who 
have  lived  faithful  lives,  and  whose  characters 
and  services  have  made  them  as  "  living  epis- 
tles, known  and  read  of  all  men."  The  ven- 
erable pastor  at  Aintab,  in  Asia  Minor,  the 
Rev.  Kara  Krikore,  who  has  just  celebrated 
the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  his  pastorate  over 
the  church  in  that  city,  is  a  worthy  example. 

These  men  and  women  of  faith  and  zeal 
whom  we  have  mentioned  in  this  long  calen- 
dar of  sainthood  have  never  been  canonized 
officially  ;  they  are  only  plain  witnesses  to  the 
sanctifying  power  and  the  unselfish  impulses 
of  the  Gospel ;  but  they  have  lived  and  com- 
muned with  Christ,  in  whatever  environment 
their  lot  has  been  cast,  and  they  have  borne 


142     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

about  in  their  spiritual  natures  "  the  marks 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  "  as  truly  as  have  many  of 
those  religious  zealots  and  heroes  who  have 
been  designated  as  saints  by  popular  acclaim 
or  ecclesiastical  decree.  It  was  a  true  and 
gracious  instinct  which  led  the  late  Dr.  Ed- 
win Hatch,  the  accomplished  student  of 
Church  Institutions,  in  his  little  poem,  entitled 
"  All  Saints,"  to  include  a  reference  to  uni- 
versal sainthood  wherever  Christ  has  been 
loved  and  served,  the  world  over. 

"  Saints  of  the  early  dawn  of  Christ, 

Saints  of  imperial  Rome, 
Saints  of  the  cloistered  Middle  Age, 

Saints  of  the  modern  home ; 
Saints  of  the  soft  and  sunny  East, 

Saints  of  the  frozen  seas, 
Saints  of  the  isles  that  wave  their  palms, 

In  the  far  Antipodes ; 
Saints  of  the  marts  and  busy  streets, 

Saints  of  the  squalid  lanes, 
Saints  of  the  silent  solitudes, 

Of  the  prairies  and  the  plains ; 
Saints  who  were  wafted  to  the  skies 

In  the  torment  robe  of  flame, 
Saints  who  have  graven  on  men's  thoughts 

A  monumental  name." 

We  have  dwelt  at  such  length  on  the  rec- 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        143 

ord  of  these  native  converts  who  have  wit- 
nessed by  their  own  lives  and  characters  to 
the  redeeming  and  constraining  power  of  the 
Gospel,  that  we  have  little  time  left  to  speak 
of  the  testimony  of  outside  witnesses  who  have 
had  opportunities  to  observe  mission  work, 
and  have  recognized  its  beneficent  and  helpful 
influence.  Dr.  James  L.  Barton  has  recently 
published  a  volume  dealing  with  this  aspect  of 
the  subject.  It  is  entitled,  "  The  Missionary 
and  His  Critics,"  and  as  the  book  is  accessi- 
ble to  all,  we  will  not  repeat  anything  which 
can  be  found  therein.  Statements  which  have 
appeared  within  a  few  months  since  that  book 
was  issued  will  be  more  than  sufficient  for 
our  present  purpose. 

We  note  that  Lieut.-General  MacArthur 
has  recently  expressed  his  "  appreciation  of 
the  splendid  work  the  missionaries  are  doing 
in  the  Severance  Hospital  at  Seoul,"  and,  in 
the  same  connection,  he  remarks  :  "  I  desire 
further  to  speak  in  the  highest  terms  of  com- 
mendation of  the  missionary  work  I  saw  else- 
where in  Korea."  The  Crown  Prince  of  Siam 
has  said  publicly  within  a  few  months:  "As 


144     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

my  royal  grandfather  and  my  royal  father 
have  befriended  the  Christian  missionaries, 
so  I  trust  that  I,  too,  shall  have  an  opportu- 
nity on  proper  occasions  to  assist  them  to  the 
limit  of  my  power."  Sir  Andrew  H.  L. 
Fraser,  the  Lieutenant-Governor  of  Bengal, 
in  addressing  a  recent  General  Assembly  of 
the  Church  of  Scotland,  remarked  that  he  had 
been  thirty-five  years  in  India,  and,  contin- 
uing, said  :  "  I  am  glad  of  an  opportunity  of 
expressing  the  deep  sense  of  obligation  which 
as  an  officer  of  the  government  I  feel  to  the 
missionaries."  His  address  was  replete  with 
statements  of  a  similar  tenor,  indicating  his 
high  estimate  of  the  value  of  missions  in 
India.  In  September,  1906,  Sir  Arthur  Law- 
ley,  Lieutenant-Governor  of  Madras,  visited 
Coimbatore,  and  while  there  discharged  the 
pleasant  duty  of  presenting  to  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Brough,  of  the  London  Mission,  the  Kaiser-i- 
Hind  Medal  awarded  by  King  Edward  for 
services  rendered  during  a  recent  visitation  of 
the  plague.  His  address  upon  the  occasion 
was  a  hearty  tribute  to  the  worth  of  missions. 
A  few  weeks  later,  at  the  ceremony  of  laying 


A  NEW  CLOUD   OF  WITNESSES        145 

the  corner-stone  of  the  new  college  building 
of  the  American  Board  Mission  at  Madura, 
South  India,  the  same  official,  in  the  course 
of  an  address  glowing  with  sympathetic  en- 
thusiasm, remarked  :  "  I  hail  with  satisfaction 
the  opportunity  which  you  have  been  good 
enough  to  give  me  to-day  of  saying,  as  the 
head  of  the  government  in  this  Presidency, 
how  highly  I  appreciate  the  value  of  your 
splendid  work,  done  so  ardently  and  earnestly. 
I  hope  that  the  work  may  grow  and  prosper. 
I  hope  that  here  upon  this  height  may  grow 
an  institution  worthy  of  the  objects  with 
which  it  has  been  taken  in  hand,  worthy  of 
those  who  made  it  possible  to  come  to 
achievement,  worthy  of  the  sons  of  that  great 
Anglo-Saxon  nation  who  have  shown  them- 
selves so  well  able  to  carry  over  the  Western 
seas,  right  up  to  the  farthest  corners  of  the 
earth,  the  best  and  the  noblest  traditions  of 
the  race  from  which  they  sprang.  That  God 
may  prosper  them  in  their  work  is  my  most 
deep  and  earnest  prayer." 

In  a  recent  letter  to  the  President  of  Madura 
College,  Lord  Curzon,  Ex- Viceroy  of  India, 


146     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

writes  :  "  While  in  India  I  was  greatly  im- 
pressed with  the  excellent,  devoted,  and  self- 
sacrificing  work  that  was  being  spontaneously 
undertaken  by  American  educational  and 
missionary  institutions,  and  I  regard  them  as 
a  valuable  adjunct  to  the  forces  of  govern- 
ment in  aiming  at  the  moral  and  intellectual 
development  of  the  people."  Sir  Frederic 
S.  P.  Lely,  in  a  paper  on  the  "  Practical  Side 
of  Famine  in  India,"  read  recently  before  the 
Indian  Section  of  the  Society  of  Arts,  at  a 
meeting  held  in  London,  spoke  in  terms  of 
unstinted  admiration  of  the  services  of  mis- 
sionaries on  behalf  of  famine  sufferers.  He 
said :  "  Given  a  wasted  famine  starveling, 
and  nothing  will  save  him,  but  such  care  as 
cannot  be  bought.  The  devoted  Christian 
women  missionaries  who  sought  out  wretched 
little  ones,  and  mothered  them  back  to  life, 
deserved,  as  they  gained,  the  gratitude  of  the 
people."  He  mentioned  also  by  name  three 
missionaries,  Messrs.  Mulligan,  Mawhinney, 
and  Thompson,  who  had  done  heroic  and 
loving,  though  to  themselves  fatal,  service  in 
famine  relief,  and  concerning  them  he  said : 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        147 

"I  make  no  apology  for  mentioning  these 
names,  for  the  blood  of  such  men  is  the  seed 
— and  the  sap — of  empire."  Lord  Curzon, 
who  was  in  the  chair  at  the  time,  spoke  also 
of  the  "  devotion  of  the  missionaries,  English, 
American,  Canadian,  European,  of  every 
nationality,  women  as  well  as  men.  They 
literally  stood  for  months  between  the  living 
and  the  dead,  and  they  set  a  noble  example 
of  the  creed  of  their  Master."  Sir  Frederick 
Nicholson  made  an  address  at  Northfield  in 
1906.  He  was  in  this  country  on  official  busi- 
ness, but  accepted  the  invitation  to  give  his 
impression  of  missions,  derived  during  a  resi- 
dence of  thirty-seven  years  in  India.  His 
tribute,  which  you  will  find  in  the  Missionary 
Review  of  the  World,  for  January,  1907,  is 
worth  reading,  as  the  testimony  of  one  who 
speaks  advisedly  of  what  he  knows. 

Mr.  P.  Whitwell  Wilson,  M.  P.,  in  a  con- 
tribution to  the  pages  of  the  Chronicle  of  the 
London  Missionary  Society,  for  March,  1908, 
writes  appreciatively  of  the  influence  of  the 
missionary  in  quickening  the  spirit  of  broth- 
erhood   in  the  imperial  policy  of  nations. 


148     THE  NEW   HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

"  He  is  a  guarantee,"  he  writes,  "  that  our 
nation  in  approaching  less  civilized  peoples 
shall  be  actuated  not  merely  by  imperial  am- 
bition, or  love  of  gain,  but  by  real  desire  to 
communicate  to  others  the  best  life  that  we 
have  found  ourselves."  At  the  conclusion  of 
his  article  he  states :  "  Under  these  circum- 
stances, I  am,  as  a  mere  politician,  convinced 
of  the  value,  and  indeed  the  necessity  of 
missions.  One  sees  clearly  that  empires  are 
bound  to  expand.  One  also  sees  that  such 
expansion  would  be  an  awful  and  cruel 
business,  if  it  were  not  accompanied  by  a  vein 
of  Christian  sacrifice." 

Sir  Andrew  Wingate,  in  a  speech  opening 
a  missionary  exhibition  held  recently  at  Brom- 
ley, near  London,  spoke  of  the  opportunity 
which  the  Church  had  for  moulding  the  youth 
of  China  and  India  for  Christ.  "  The  ominous 
rumblings  in  India,"  he  remarked,  "show  that 
it  is  not  education,  but  character,  not  books, 
but  the  Bible,  that  play  the  greater  part  in 
the  highest  education  of  a  nation."  He  noted 
the  change  of  tone  in  men  of  business  toward 
missions,  and  their  increasing  inclination  to 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        149 

ask  themselves  whether  the  kingdom  of 
Christ  is  not  the  best  investment  for  their 
money.  Sir  Frederick  Cunningham,  who  has 
had  long  experience  as  a  civil  administrator 
in  India,  in  a  recent  address  referred  to  "  the 
great  value  of  the  missionary's  work  in  school 
and  hospital,  in  humanizing  and  elevating 
the  people.  I  for  one  can  bear  testimony  to 
its  worth,  both  from  the  educational  and  po- 
litical aspect."  Sir  Frederick  spoke  as  one 
who  had  known  many  missionaries  intimately. 
Sir  James  Bourdillon,  an  Indian  official  of  note, 
has  also  said  in  a  recent  address,  that  one  of 
the  justifications  of  missions  was  "  the  value 
of  such  work  in  the  Church  itself.  Unless  the 
Church  could  put  forth  its  power,  and  send 
forth  missionaries,  it  could  not  flourish,  and 
could  not  live." 

The  Right  Honourable  Winston  Churchill, 
of  the  English  Cabinet,  has  recently  visited 
Uganda,  and  since  his  return  to  England  he 
has  spoken  with  warm  praise  of  missionary 
work  in  that  country.  His  address  at  the 
National  Liberal  Club,  in  which  he  referred 
to  the  benefits  of  missions  in  Uganda,  was  a 


150     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

testimony  of  exceptional  value.  "  Once  in 
Uganda,"  he  remarked,  "you  went  into 
another  world.  You  found  there  a  com- 
pletely established  polity — a  State  with  every 
one  in  his  place  and  a  place  for  every  one.  You 
found  clothed,  cultivated,  educated  natives. 
You  found  200,000  who  could  read  and  write, 
a  very  great  number  who  had  embraced  the 
Christian  faith,  and  had  abandoned  polygamy 
in  consequence  of  their  conversion.  You 
found,  in  short,  in  Uganda  almost  everything 
which  went  to  vindicate  the  ideal  which  the 
negrophile  had  so  often  held  up  before  the 
House  of  Commons,  and  in  regard  to  which 
he  had  so  often  in  other  places  been  disap- 
pointed by  the  hard  logic  of  facts  and  the  dis- 
appointing trend  of  concrete  and  material 
events.  We  owed  a  great  deal  in  Uganda 
to  the  development,  on,  he  thought,  an  un- 
equalled scale  of  missionary  enterprise.  In 
some  other  parts  of  the  British  Empire  he  had 
found  the  official  classes  distrustful  of  mis- 
sionary enterprise.  In  Uganda  he  found 
them  very  grateful.  Devoted  Christian  men 
of  different  Churches,  but  of  a  common  char- 


A  NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        15I 

ity,  had  laboured  earnestly  and  strenuously, 
year  in,  year  out,  to  raise  the  moral  and  spir- 
itual conceptions  of  one  of  the  most  intelli- 
gent races  in  the  whole  of  the  African  Conti- 
nent, and  they  had  succeeded  undoubtedly  in 
introducing  a  character  of  progress  and  de- 
corum into  the  life  of  Uganda,  which  made 
that  State  one  of  the  most  interesting  of  those 
for  which  the  British  public  had  ever  be- 
come directly  or  indirectly  responsible."  Mr. 
George  Wilson,  C.  B.,  Deputy-Commissioner 
of  the  Uganda  Protectorate,  referring  to  the 
work  of  missions  in  that  country,  remarked 
at  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Society  of  Arts  that 
"  the  missionary  societies  have  .  .  .  done 
a  magnificent  work,  and,  let  us  hope  and  be- 
lieve, as  we  may,  an  ever-enduring  work  in 
the  educational  and  moral  upbringing  of  the 
natives." 

In  the  Contemporary  Review  for  February, 
1908,  is  a  report  on  Christian  Missions  in 
China,  by  Mr.  F.  W.  Fox,  Prof.  Alexander 
Macalister  of  Cambridge,  and  Sir  Alexander 
Simpson  of  Edinburgh,  who  have  recently 
visited  China,  with  a  view  to  gathering  first- 


152     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

hand  information  as  to  the  status  of  missions 
in  that  empire.  The  article  leaves  no  doubt 
in  the  reader's  mind  that  these  distinguished 
visitors  found  the  best  reasons  to  approve  and 
endorse  missionary  effort,  and  that  they  re- 
turned home  with  the  determination  to  sup- 
port and  encourage  the  missionary  enterprise 
in  the  Far  East. 

The  Acting-Governor  of  Nigeria,  Mr.  Fos- 
bery,  said  in  a  public  address  not  long  ago  : 
"  It  is  impossible  to  overestimate  the  good  al- 
ready accomplished  in  Southern  Nigeria  by 
the  Church  Missionary  Society."  He  gave 
hearty  assurance  of  his  willing  cooperation 
and  support  in  all  measures  tending  to  the 
advancement  of  true  religion  and  civilization. 
Mr.  Archibald  R.  Colquhoun,  the  author  and 
world-wide  traveller,  in  his  recent  book  on 
"  The  Africander  Land,"  gives  ungrudging 
testimony  to  the  work  accomplished  there  by 
missionaries.  Admiral  A.  T.  Mahan,  in  his 
volume  issued  not  long  ago,  entitled,  "  The 
Problem  of  Asia,  and  Its  Effects  on  Interna- 
tional Policies,"  deprecates  the  attitude  taken 
by  hostile  critics  of  missions,  and  speaks  with 


A   NEW  CLOUD  OF  WITNESSES        1 53 

emphasis  of  the  desirability  of  mission  effort 
in  Far  Eastern  nations,  especially  China.  The 
striking  address  of  Sir  Henry  Mortimer  Du- 
rand,  at  the  Student  Volunteer  Convention 
at  Nashville,  in  the  spring  of  1906,  is  probably 
familiar  to  all. 

Three  well-known  newspaper  correspond- 
ents in  the  Far  East  have  recently  writ- 
ten on  the  subject  of  missions,  Mr.  Fred- 
erick McCormick,  Mr.  F.  A.  McKenzie, 
and  Mr.  W.  T.  Ellis.  Mr.  McCormick  says 
at  the  close  of  a  communication  expressing 
approval  of  missionary  service  in  China: 
"We  must,  as  Americans,  quit  thoughtless 
condemnation  of  missions,  and  give  aid  to  all 
kinds  of  efforts  to  reach  the  Chinese  people." 
Mr.  McKenzie  declares,  in  his  recently  pub- 
lished volume,  entitled,  "  The  Unveiled  East," 
that  the  missionaries  "have  been  not  only 
teachers  of  religion,  but  the  advanced  agents 
of  civilization."  Mr.  Ellis,  whose  testimony 
we  have  previously  mentioned,  has  given  us 
repeated  statements  as  to  the  value  of  mission 
work  in  the  lands  he  has  visited  in  the  Far 
East,  during  his  world  tour  of  1906-7. 


154     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

This  witness  from  without  is  growing 
clearer  and  more  decisive.  Missions  have 
had  to  face  much  ignorant  criticism  and 
supercilious  disparagement  in  the  past,  but 
there  are  signs  that  they  are  gradually  com- 
ing to  their  own,  and  that  they  will  not  only 
be  vindicated,  but  will  win  more  fully  than 
ever  before  the  admiring  sympathy  and  the 
loving  support  of  the  Church  of  Christ. 


LECTURE    IV 
FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM 


"  We  are  to  seek  first  the  Kingdom  of  God.  All  organiza- 
tions, even  including  the  Church,  are  put  secondary.  One  may 
be  loyal  to  the  Kingdom  and  at  the  same  time  loyal  to  the 
Church,  because  the  Church  is  the  means  of  which  the  King- 
dom is  the  end.  The  Church  will  be  the  centre  for  influences 
which  reach  out  and  permeate  all  life.  But  the  Church  will 
eventuate  in  something  more  substantial  than  itself,  namely,  the 
Kingdom  of  God.  In  recent  times  it  is  apparent  that  the  idea 
of  the  Kingdom  is  displacing,  in  part  at  least,  that  of  the  Church. 
The  great  movements  of  reform,  such  as  the  abolition  of  slavery, 
while  having  their  roots  in  the  teachings  of  the  Church,  are 
largely  conducted  on  extra-church  lines.  Thus,  in  Japan  and 
in  China  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations  win  a  confi- 
dence and  support  which  are  not  given  to  denominations. 
With  apostolic  fervour  and  the  wisdom  of  sages  these  associa- 
tions have  won  recognition  of  which  they  are  well  worthy. 
The  laity  have  shown  themselves  somewhat  in  advance  of  the 
clergy  in  calling  for  essential  Christianity,  and,  in  large  part, 
the  obliterating  of  many  sectarian  distinctions.  Unless  the 
Church  broadens  its  borders,  and  enlarges  its  conceptions,  and 
humanizes  its  operations,  it  will  fail  to  maintain  its  important 
position  in  the  world.  The  power  of  the  Church  will  grow  as 
it  synchronizes  its  operations  with  the  Kingdom,  and  learns  to 
work  in  a  regulated  and  cooperative  activity." 

— Shanghai  Centenary  Missionary  Conference. 


LECTURE  IV 

FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM 

THE  missionary  enterprise,  as  we  have 
long   ago  discovered,  is  a   unique 
potentiality   in   the   world.     It  has 
opened  new  chapters  in  history  ;  it  has  intro- 
duced new  forces  into  human  life  and  racial 
progress.     In  its  initial  stages,  under  Chris- 
tian auspices,  it  grappled  with  the   mighty 
Roman  Empire— that  great  symbol  of  mili- 
tant  world    power   and   efflorescent    pagan 
culture,— and  transformed  it  into  a  historic 
influence,  which  has  given  a  brighter  colour- 
ing, and  a  distinctly  nobler  tendency,  to  the 
religious,  social,  and  political  development  of 
Christendom.     In  later  centuries  it  entered 
the  British  Isles  ;  it  penetrated  into  the  wilds 
of  Northern  Europe  ;  it  moulded   Teutonic 
and  Slavic  development ;  it  touched  a  nascent 
Christendom  at  many  points  of  vital  growth 
and  crucial  import.     It  sailed  westward  and 
*57 


158     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

eastward,  enshrined  in  the  hearts  of  aspiring 
explorers  and  sturdy  Puritans.  It  traversed 
the  caravan  routes  into  distant  China ;  it 
plowed  its  way  through  the  Far  Eastern  seas, 
landing  on  Indian,  East  Indian,  and  Japanese 
shores.  At  times  it  has  seemed  to  be  baffled 
and  defeated ;  yet  it  has  never  acknowledged 
itself  to  be  vanquished,  nor  accepted  failure 
as  its  portion. 

In  these  latter  years  of  history  it  has  as- 
sumed a  more  strenuous  role  of  renewed 
activities,  and  we  have  behind  us  a  century 
of  missionary  progress,  which  calls  for  grat- 
itude, reveals  large  possibilities  of  future 
advance,  and  opens  vistas  of  hope  in  the 
hidden  realm  of  the  Church's  destiny  and 
final  victory.  We  are  at  the  present  moment 
evidently  turning  the  pages  of  what  may  be 
called  a  new  chapter  in  the  annals  of  the 
kingdom.  Its  quality  of  newness  does  not 
arise  merely  from  the  fact  that  it  has  become 
aggressively  missionary,  since  the  mission- 
ary spirit  and  aim  have  been  characteristic 
of  Christianity  from  the  beginning,  even 
though  at  times  much  hampered,  and  but 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 59 

dimly  revealed.  Its  newness  is  rather  iden- 
tified with  matters  of  emphasis,  and  pertains 
to  the  enlargement  of  activities.  It  reveals 
itself  in  an  alert  coordination  with  world 
changes,  in  fresh  adaptation  to  the  calls  of 
new  racial  contact,  in  incisive  moulding 
touches  at  points  of  ethical  influence,  relig- 
ious enlightenment,  intellectual  quickening, 
social  reformation,  and  political  readjust- 
ment. 

Each  age  of  the  Church  seems  to  have 
assigned  to  it  some  special  service  to  render, 
some  profound  principle  to  vindicate  and 
establish,  some  paramount  duty  to  discharge, 
or  some  ripe  harvest  to  gather  for  the  enrich- 
ment of  man's  religious  inheritance.  The 
sphere  of  service  which  may  be  regarded  as 
indicating  the  function  of  our  own  age  might 
be  estimated  differently  from  different  stand- 
points, but  no  intelligent  student  of  the 
progress  of  Christ's  kingdom  could  fail  to 
recognize  the  vital  responsibility  which  rests 
upon  the  Church  of  our  day  to  foster  the 
missionary  enterprise  as  one  at  least  of  our 
foremost  duties  to  the  kingdom  and  to  the 


160    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

world.  We  have  been  diligent  students  of 
the  past,  and  in  the  spheres  of  historic  re- 
search, literary  scrutiny,  and  theological 
study,  we  have  been  alert  critics,  and  con- 
servative reconstructionists,  according  to  the 
light  and  insight  which  have  been  given  us. 
In  this  stirring,  unsettled,  and  at  the  same 
time  mobile,  and  swiftly  advancing  age, 
we  have  a  wonderful  call  of  Christian  oppor- 
tunism. It  becomes,  therefore,  our  special 
mission  and  duty  to  dedicate  ourselves  to  a 
noble  forward  movement  in  the  progress  of 
Christ's  kingdom,  to  a  glorified  evangelism 
of  world-wide  proportions.  It  is  the  great 
mission  of  the  Church  in  our  day  not  to  ex- 
ploit the  past,  or  to  fight  over  the  old  battles 
of  a  highly  scholastic  dogmatism,  but  rather, 
while  holding  fast  to  essential  evangelical 
truth,  to  improve  and  possess  the  present, 
and  make  large  plans  for  winning  the  future. 
The  watchword  of  the  times  is,  "  Go  For- 
ward." We  can  hear  it  as  clearly  as  was 
heard  that  command  which  was  given  to  the 
children  of  Israel  on  the  shores  of  the  Red 
Sea,  centuries  ago. 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      l6l 

This  fresh  chapter  in  the  missionary  annals 
of  the  kingdom  into  which  we  are  now  peer- 
ing seems  to  be  marked  by  three  leading 
aspects.  It  is  cosmopolitan  to  an  extent 
hitherto  unknown;  it  reveals  unexampled 
opportunities  and  calls  of  privilege;  it  pre- 
sents a  record  of  varied  and  notable  achieve- 
ments, which  have  changed  the  outlook  of 
humanity.  Its  enlarged  cosmopolitanism,  its 
increasing  opportunity,  its  striking  achieve- 
ments :  in  these  three  aspects  of  the  present- 
day  progress  of  the  kingdom  do  we  not  dis- 
cover the  turning  of  a  new  leaf  in  the  history 
of  world-redemption  ? 

Its  cosmopolitan  newness  is  not  the  result 
of  any  change  in  foundation  principles  or 
characteristic  aims ;  it  has  come  rather  with 
enlargement  of  vision,  realization  of  responsi- 
bility, opening  of  doors  of  access,  and  a  fresh 
consecration  on  the  part  of  the  Church  to  the 
duty  of  spiritual  prospecting  among  alien 
races,  and  hitherto  inaccessible  peoples. 
Since  Carey  landed  in  India,  not,  speaking 
historically,  as  the  first  pioneer  missionary, 
but  rather  as  a  forerunner  of  the  modern  era : 


162     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

since  Morrison  landed  in  China ;  since  Lig- 
gins,  Williams,  and  Hepburn  entered  Japan  ; 
and  since  the  opening  of  the  modern  mis- 
sionary campaign  in  other  lands,  an  immense 
development  of  the  idea  and  plan  of  universal 
missionary  propaganda  has  taken  possession 
of  the  Christian  consciousness. 

To  modern  Christendom  it  has  become 
virtually  a  fresh  revelation  in  the  unfoldings 
of  the  kingdom.  A  new  library  of  mission- 
ary literature  has  been  issued  in  connection 
with  it,  dealing  with  history,  statistics,  en- 
vironment, difficulties,  and  successes.  The 
religious  press,  and  especially  missionary 
periodicals,  give  us  columns  of  detail  and 
incident.  Dignified  and  specialized  mission- 
ary reviews  lie  upon  our  tables,  containing 
discussions  of  the  more  scholastic  and  aca- 
demic aspects  of  the  enterprise,  and  dealing 
thoughtfully  with  the  perplexing  problems 
and  practical  issues  which  are  involved  in  its 
successful  advance.  Mission  study  has  now 
become  a  comparatively  easy  matter  ;  in  fact, 
we  can  be  almost  surcharged  with  informa- 
tion, if  we  are  alert  to  find  it.    Contrast  the  op- 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 63 

portunities  of  familiarizing  ourselves  with  the 
present  status  of  missions  in  the  world  with 
those  accessible  to  Alexander  Duff  in  1824, 
when,  with  a  group  of  fellow-students  at  St. 
Andrews  University,  he  founded  a  Students' 
Missionary  Society  in  that  ancient  seat  of 
learning,  with  the  avowed  purpose,  to  quote 
from  the  prospectus,  "  of  studying  foreign 
missions,  so  as  to  satisfy  themselves  of  the 
necessities  of  the  world  outside  of  Christen- 
dom." The  books,  magazines,  and  articles, 
often  found  in  secular  as  well  as  religious 
journals,  the  leaflets,  diagrams,  charts,  and 
the  voluminous  special  literature  of  various 
missionary  organizations,  have  become  a  dis- 
tinctive feature  of  the  literary  output  of  our 
day.  Church  conferences  and  ecclesiastical 
assemblies  give  notable  attention  to  foreign 
missions  ;  numerous  conventions,  followed  by 
extended  published  reports,  are  gathered  to 
consider  and  promote  their  interests  ;  classes 
for  specialized  study  are  formed  in  schools, 
colleges,  and  churches ;  forward  movements 
are  working  to  stimulate  an  intelligent  zeal ; 
and  mission  study  schools  and  assemblies 


164     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

convene  with  the  serious  purpose  of  devoting 
days  to  continuous  study  of  the  subject.  A 
Laymen's  Missionary  Movement  not  only  ar- 
rests the  attention  of  our  American  Churches, 
but  invades  Great  Britain  and  receives  a 
noteworthy  welcome  ;  and  we  submit  that  all 
this  is  something  new  in  the  annals  of  the 
kingdom. 

There  is  a  large  cosmopolitanism  also  in 
the  outlook  and  scope  of  our  missionary 
agencies.  They  are  in  no  sense  self-centered, 
narrow,  and  provincial ;  they  are  world-wide 
in  sympathy ;  they  contemplate  distant  and 
alien  races  as  potential  members  of  a  uni- 
versal Christendom,  and  regard  them  as 
rightful  heirs  of  the  privileges  and  fruitions 
of  the  Gospel.  There  is,  moreover,  an  en- 
larged conception  on  the  part  of  the  Church 
of  the  extent  and  variety  of  the  benefits 
which  may  follow  and  attend  successful 
missionary  effort  The  individualistic  view 
which  prevailed  in  the  early  missions  of  the 
Church,  and  which  was,  to  a  considerable 
extent,  still  maintained  in  the  early  stages  of 
the  missionary  revival  of  the  past  century, 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 65 

regarding  as  it  did  the  individual  convert  as 
its  great,  and  perhaps  sometimes  almost  its 
only  prize,  has  not,  to  be  sure,  been  super- 
seded or  abandoned,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  it  never  will  be  discarded.  Its  culmi- 
nating goal  of  church  organization,  and  the 
establishment  of  an  objective  society  for  com- 
munion, culture,  and  service,  will  never  grow 
out  of  date,  or  cease  to  be  essential  as  an 
instrument  of  religious  influence  and  spiritual 
expansion.  This  is  no  longer,  however,  the 
exclusive  or  limited  aim,  nor  is  it  a  suf- 
ficiently satisfying  interpretation  of  missions. 
We  have  discovered  abundant  reason  to  ex- 
pect larger  results,  and  to  hope  for  more 
radical  and  comprehensive  reconstruction  in 
the  intellectual,  social,  industrial,  and  even 
political  and  administrative  life  of  backward 
peoples.  The  view  which  regards  the  rescue 
of  the  individual,  and  his  identification  with 
the  spiritual  forces  of  the  Gospel  propaganda, 
as  a  fundamental  feature  of  missions,  is  not 
discredited  in  the  least,  and  is  assuredly  not 
abandoned.  It  is  still  representative  and 
regnant,   while    at    the    same   time   its  full 


1 66     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

outreaching  significance,  and  its  expansive 
import,  have  become  more  apparent,  and 
have  rounded  out  our  modern  missionary 
ideal  with  an  auspicious  and  momentous 
meaning. 

In  the  same  way  the  nationalistic  or  tribal 
view  of  missionary  progress,  which  was  so 
largely  the  governing  aim  in  the  medieval 
period,  has  been  still  further  expanded.  It  was 
in  its  day  a  comprehensive  and  fructifying 
spirit  in  the  missionary  purpose  of  that  age ; 
yet  it  would  fail  now  to  compass  the  range  of 
evangelistic  effort  in  this  our  cosmopolitan 
age.  Barbarous  races,  heathen  tribes,  and 
even  whole  nations,  were  included,  to  be  sure, 
in  the  magnificent  plans  of  an  Augustine,  a 
Columba,  a  Boniface,  an  Ansgar,  a  Cyril,  a 
Methodius,  and  other  religious  leaders  of  the 
times.  Mass  conversions  of  king  and  people 
were  not  unknown,  in  some  few  instances  by 
methods  quite  too  militant  to  meet  with  our 
approval ;  yet  it  was  thus  that  the  founda- 
tions of  Occidental  Christendom  began  to  be 
laid.  We  cannot  in  our  present  outlook  spare 
either  the  individualistic  aim  or  the  national- 


FRESH   ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 67 

istic  hope  in  any  adequate  conception  of  our 
missionary  programme,  but  we  have  now  ad- 
vanced to  a  time  in  the  growth  of  the  king- 
dom, and  in  the  progress  of  missions,  when 
the  whole  round  world  looms  up  before  us  in 
practical  and  realistic  vision,  as  the  great  and 
entrancing  goal  of  effort.  An  ideal  of  the 
universal  kingdom  begins  to  thrill  us  and  al- 
lure us.  We  are  not  intimating  that  this 
breadth  of  vision  and  largeness  of  aim  are 
not  found  in  the  original  charter  of  missions  ; 
they  are  there  potentially,  and  the  missionary 
leaders  in  all  ages  have  been  under  their 
sway  ;  but  they  have  never  captured  the  con- 
sciences and  inspired  the  hopes  of  so  large  a 
proportion  of  the  serious  and  sincere  element 
in  our  whole  Christian  community  as  at  the 
present  time.  The  entire  outlook  of  missions 
has  been  expanded,  ennobled,  and  transfig- 
ured in  the  eyes  of  the  more  devout  and  spir- 
itual members  of  our  Churches,  and  that  con- 
spicuously, within  a  generation,  almost,  I 
might  say,  within  a  decade. 

We  are  all  interested  and  touched  by  the 
individualistic  incidents  of  the  campaign,  and 


168     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

we  find  much  that  is  inspiring  and  rewarding 
in  the  study  of  the  great  nationalistic  devel- 
opments of  medieval  and  modern  history,  es- 
pecially that  outcome  of  Christian  civilization 
which  can  be  traced  all  through  the  Christian 
centuries.  As  a  feature  of  denominational 
enterprise,  our  various  ecclesiastical  organi- 
zations have  become  attached  and  specially 
attracted  to  the  missionary  work  which  they 
have  conducted  among  different  races.  Each 
Church  has  found  a  distinct  inspiration,  and 
has  secured  a  reward  all  its  own  in  connec- 
tion with  the  gifts,  the  prayers,  and  the  sac- 
rifices, as  well  as  the  hopes,  which  have  cen- 
tered largely  in  those  special  fields  among 
those  chosen  races  where  its  missionary  ef- 
forts have  been  expended.  But  is  it  not  true 
that  a  larger  interest  and  a  broader  vision  is 
now  enlisting  the  attention  of  all  the  Churches? 
The  universal  Christian  heart  is  adjusting  it- 
self to  the  conception  of  a  great  world  victory, 
which  is  destined  to  become,  as  we  are  able 
to  bear  it,  the  absorbing,  inspirational  motive 
of  the  missionary  movement  of  the  whole 
Church  of  Christ.     Nothing,  I  take  it,  will 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 69 

have  a  more  irresistible  influence  in  establish- 
ing an  interdenominational  status  of  brother- 
hood and  federated  cooperation  than  the  call 
of  universal  missions  addressed  to  the  united 
hearts  of  all  ecclesiastical  communions. 

We  are  thus  being  graduated  from  prelimi- 
nary courses  of  study  and  training,  and  are 
now  facing  new  conditions,  in  which  we  enter, 
not  without  grave  responsibilities,  upon  an 
era  of  momentous  and  united  struggle  for  the 
mastery  of  the  world.  In  this  campaign  we 
shall,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  enlist  a  native  army 
of  zealous  converts  and  evangelists  to  assume 
with  us  in  friendly  cooperation  the  responsi- 
bility and  the  high  rewards  of  finally  success- 
ful achievement.  It  will  be  meanwhile,  how- 
ever, a  time  of  testing  for  the  home  Church. 
God's  Providence  is  manifestly  turning  a  page 
in  the  unfoldings  of  the  divine  purpose,  the 
meaning  of  which  is  expansion.  Will  the 
Church  be  alert  and  attentive?  Our  Lord, 
who  is  sometimes  represented  as  standing  at 
a  closed  door  and  knocking,  now  stands  at 
an  open  door  and  beckons.  Will  the  Church 
respond  ?     "  Watchman,  what  of  the  night  ?  " 


170     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

has  usually  been  interpreted  as  addressed  to 
the  foreign  missionary  at  his  outpost,  waiting 
and  watching  for  the  dawn  to  illumine  the 
darkness  of  heathenism.  One  is  tempted  to 
ask,  does  not  the  question  under  present  con- 
ditions apply  quite  as  well  to  the  pastors  and 
leaders  of  Christendom,  waiting  and  watch- 
ing for  increasing  signs  of  spiritual  earnest- 
ness and  sacrificial  loyalty  on  the  part  of  the 
home  Church  ? 

We  can  surely  do  far  better  than  any  past 
record  we  have  maintained  during  the 
slumbrous  and  relaxed  centuries  which  have 
gone.  "  God  is  not  in  all  his  thoughts  "  was 
a  sign  of  spiritual  degeneracy  in  the  Psalmist's 
day;  in  our  present  era  of  vastly  extended 
opportunity,  and  consequent  responsibility, 
would  it  not  be  quite  as  grievous  a  lapse  if  it 
should  be  justly  said  of  the  Church,  "  God's 
world  is  not  in  all  its  thoughts  "  ?  The  out- 
look for  missions  to  those  who  entered  the 
service  a  half  century  ago,  was  very  different 
from  the  prospect  which  opens  to  a  candidate 
accepting  his  appointment  in  1908.  The 
new  mission  recruit  at  the  present  time  steps 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      171 

into  the  ranks  at  an  hour  of  triumphant  ad- 
vance. He  will  keep  step  in  the  victorious 
march  of  the  new  century. 

Another,  and  a  very  striking   feature  of 
this  new  chapter  in  the  annals  of  the  king- 
dom is  its  wonderful  unfolding  of  opportunity 
to  the  Church.     No  such  age  has  dawned  in 
the  history  of  redemption  as  the  one  in  which 
we  are  privileged  to  pray  and  serve.     "  Eye 
hath  not  seen,  nor  ear  heard"  might  have 
been  said  concerning  this  grand  feature  of 
our  age  a  few  generations  ago.     There  have 
been  periods  which  have  witnessed  events  of 
more  crucial  import ;  there  have  been  times 
of    culmination,    fruition,    and    momentous 
change  in  the  providential  unfoldings  of  re- 
ligious history,  which  may  have  surpassed 
the  present  in  significance  and  promise  ;  but 
for  the  lifting  up  of  heads  that  the  glory  of 
Christ's  passing  through  the  gates  of  world 
conquest   may   appear,  for   the   opening   of 
doors  of  access  to  all  races  of  mankind,  for 
the  testing  and  challenging  of  the  spirit  of 
service  and  sacrifice  in  His  people,  for  the 
call  of  a  world  addressed  to  a  spiritually  en- 


172     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

dowed,  well  equipped,  and  thoroughly  com- 
petent Church,  this  age  surely  takes  pre- 
cedence of  every  other  in  its  facilities  for 
expansion,  and  its  supremacy  of  privilege. 

Whichever  way  we  turn — north,  south, 
east,  or  west — we  find  a  clear  and  open  path 
of  opportunity  away  to  the  farthest  horizon. 
It  is  not  always  an  easy  path,  nor  is  it  free 
from  discouragements  and  perils,  but  it  is 
one  which  Providence  has  opened  for  us,  and 
it  presents  no  obstacle  which  cannot  be  faced 
and  overcome  by  courage  and  zeal.  The  last 
half  century  in  Japan  has  thrown  open  a  great 
and  puissant  nation  to  the  friendly  entrance 
of  Christianity.  Korea  has  been  aroused  as 
by  a  bugle-call.  The  recent  upturnings  and 
revolutionary  changes  in  China  have  brought 
that  great  empire  into  the  swift  current  of 
modern  progress.  India  is  awakened  and 
receptive  ;  its  very  restlessness  being  in  part 
a  sign  of  moral  and  social  discontent  with 
past  conditions,  and  indicative  of  a  vague 
longing  for  uplift  and  betterment.  Africa  is 
becoming  more  and  more  conscious  of  its 
backwardness  and  degradation,  while  a  great 


FRESH  ANNALS   OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 73 

light  is  falling  silently  into  its  darkness. 
From  every  direction  new  possibilities  beckon 
the  Church,  and  the  way  thus  seems  open  for 
earnest  and  hopeful  appeal  to  the  better  nature 
of  all  mankind.  It  is  an  age  hospitable  to  re- 
constructive forces  and  regenerating  influ- 
ences. The  opportunity  everywhere  has 
broadened,  and  it  is  more  intensive,  as  well  as 
more  extensive  in  its  promise,  and  it  was 
never  more  potentially  helpful.  In  the  book  of 
the  Revelation  it  is  said  of  the  Church  in 
Philadelphia :  "  Behold,  I  have  set  before 
thee  an  open  door,  and  no  man  can  shut 
it."  The  door  of  an  accessible  world  set 
open  before  the  Church  of  our  age  is  more 
than  a  mere  imaginative  symbol ;  it  is  a  fact 
majestic  in  its  realism,  and  one  of  the  most 
impressive  things  which  the  Spirit  in  our 
time  saith  to  the  Churches. 

We  have  still  to  note  as  a  marked  charac- 
teristic of  this  new  chapter  in  the  annals  of 
the  kingdom  the  varied  and  notable  achieve- 
ments which  may  be  identified  with  the 
progress  of  missions.  We  are  all  more  or 
less  familiar  with  the  salient  features  of  mis- 


174     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

sionary  success  under  the  usual  classifica- 
tion of  evangelistic,  educational,  literary, 
philanthropic,  and  industrial  lines  of  activity. 
The  record  is  spread  before  us  in  much  de- 
tail, and  we  can  lay  our  hands  upon  a 
voluminous  literature  dealing  with  every 
important  aspect  of  the  subject.  It  has  be- 
come, in  fact,  a  question  whether  this  plethora 
of  books,  magazines,  newspaper  articles, 
leaflets,  bulletins,  diagrams,  charts,  illumi- 
nated wall-cards,  and  special  literature  of 
various  missionary  movements,  with  numer- 
ous conventions,  conferences,  summer  schools, 
and  study  classes,  does  not  at  times  almost 
overtax  a  receptive  mind.  It  seems  to  bulk 
so  large  before  diligent  searchers  for  mis- 
sionary information  that  the  emblazoned  de- 
tails may  sometimes  have  a  paralyzing  and 
wearying  effect  upon  the  sensibilities.  It  has 
seemed  to  me,  therefore,  that  for  our  present 
purpose  it  would  not  be  inappropriate  to  pay 
but  scant  attention  to  the  ordinary  routine  of 
missionary  apologetics,  and  to  endeavour  in 
the  few  moments  remaining  to  direct  your 
attention  to  some  of  the  less  familiar  aspects 


FRESH   ANNALS  OF  THE   KINGDOM      1 75 

of  the  successful  campaign  which  missions 
are  prosecuting  in  many  lands.  We  may- 
take  the  time,  however,  to  note  hastily,  in 
passing,  the  dignity  and  value  of  the  work 
already  done,  and  the  magnitude  of  the  agen- 
cies and  facilities  which  are  just  now  dedi- 
cated to  missionary  service  throughout  the 
world.  These  missionary  triumphs  are  as 
worthy  of  our  admiration  as  are  all  the  cathe- 
drals of  Christendom. 

The  potential  value  of  the  native  convert 
as  a  self-propagating  force  in  church  exten- 
sion is  full  of  promise.  Already  communi- 
cants approaching  in  number  to  very  near 
two  million  souls  are  trophies  of  a  spiritual 
conquest  which  confirms  anew  the  unfailing 
energy  of  the  Gospel,  while  the  intellectual 
awakening  which  has  stirred  great  nations, 
or  has  started  ancient,  and,  in  some  instances, 
still  savage  races  upon  new  careers  of  prog- 
ress, forms  a  noble  tribute  to  the  educational 
benefits  of  missions.  Back  of  the  vanishing 
pall  of  ignorance  which  has  shrouded  so  long 
the  mental  progress  of  undeveloped  yet  capa- 
ble races  will  lie  historically  the  missionary 


176     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

school  and  college.  The  same  may  be  said 
of  the  printed  page,  by  which  numerous  lan- 
guages, some  of  them  given  over  largely 
to  emptiness  and  vanity,  have  been  made 
vehicles  of  instruction  and  inspiration.  That 
path  of  light  which  has  grown  broader  and 
brighter  with  the  development  of  literary 
capacity,  and  the  growth  of  a  modern  in- 
digenous literature  in  the  great  language 
areas  of  the  non-Christian  world,  found,  in 
many  instances,  its  beginning  in  those  first 
faint  flashes  of  illuminating  truth  which  were 
emitted  from  the  preliminary  proof-sheets 
which  some  pioneer  missionary  seized  long 
ago,  with  joyous  enthusiasm,  from  his  little 
mission  press  in  the  early  spasms  of  its 
activity.  The  enrichment  of  native  litera- 
ture by  translations  of  the  Bible,  and  the 
infusion  of  the  best  thought  of  Western 
Christendom,  combined  with  the  philological 
and  lexicographical  achievements  of  mission- 
ary students,  with  the  resultant  stimulus  to  an 
all-round  mental  activity  along  modern  lines 
of  study  and  research,  now  give  promise  of  a 
new  intellectual  era  among  backward  races. 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 77 

Again,  in  the  sphere  of  philanthropy,  what 
a  huge  burden  of  pain  and  misery  has  been 
lifted  from  suffering  humanity.  The  medical 
ministry  of  missions,  with  its  vastly  extended 
facilities,  destined  to  develop  along  lines  of 
permanent  usefulness,  has  rendered  a  service 
to  smitten  and  helpless  millions  in  distant 
lands  which  it  would  be  impossible  adequately 
to  describe.  Hospitals,  medical  schools,  and 
training  schools  for  nurses  are  beneficent 
features  of  the  universal  missionary  pro- 
gramme. In  addition,  kindly  and  generous 
provision  has  been  made  for  the  orphan,  the 
abandoned  child,  the  helpless  widow,  the 
tempted,  bereft,  and  struggling  waif,  the 
leper,  the  imbecile,  the  inebriate,  the  blind, 
the  deaf  and  dumb,  the  opium  victim,  the 
released  prisoner,  the  freed  slave,  and,  in 
some  instances,  the  defective  and  the  insane. 
There  is  something  incomparably  precious 
and  beautiful  in  what  missions  have  done  for 
imperilled  childhood  throughout  the  worM. 

We  must  not  forget  to  note  also  the  serv- 
ice to  economic  progress  which  has  been 
accomplished  in  the  quickening  of  indolent 


178     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

lives,  and  the  awakening  in  native  communi- 
ties of  a  readiness,  and  often  a  desire  for 
work.  Missions  have  given  a  valuable  stim- 
ulus to  industrial  instincts  where  they  have 
been  almost  atrophied  by  neglect,  and  have 
helped  to  solve  the  problem  of  a  living  wage 
amid  changing  conditions.  The  spirit  of 
sober  toil  and  honest  labour  has  been  in- 
voked, to  quench  the  passion  for  plunder, 
and  banish  the  habit  of  wasteful  idleness. 
A  desire  for  wholesome  occupation,  and,  in 
many  instances,  an  attachment  to  rewarding 
toil,  have  been  awakened.  Hands  which,  if 
not  destructive,  were  practically  useless  have 
been  led  to  render  valuable  contributions 
toward  the  extension  of  skilled  industries, 
and  the  promotion  of  social  happiness  and 
comfort.  Stagnant  resources  which  have 
lain  imbedded  in  dormant  native  capacity 
have  been  given  scope  in  varied  spheres  of 
activity,  as  well  as  in  the  wide  realm  of 
artistic  genius  and  inventive  skill.  The 
riches  of  the  soil  and  the  treasures  of  under- 
lying strata  are  being  sought  out  by  the 
alert    intelligence    and   busy  hands  of  the 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 79 

native  disciples  of  missionary  artisans  and 
instructors.  These  five  lines  of  effort — evan- 
gelistic, educational,  literary,  philanthropic, 
and  industrial — if  traced  in  detail,  will  yield 
abundant  and  ever  fresh  material  for  an  in- 
creasingly effective  apologetic  vindication  of 
the  usefulness  and  far-reaching  influence  of 
missions. 

Parallel  with  these  main  lines,  however, 
and  sometimes  interlaced  with  them,  are  less 
conspicuous,  but  closely  allied,  side  lines  of 
influence,  which  can  be  traced  in  no  insig- 
nificant degree  to  missionary  sources.  No 
complete  horoscope  of  missions  can  be  made 
at  the  present  stage  of  progress  without 
giving  careful  attention  to  the  outreaching 
power  of  these  indirect  and  secondary  re- 
sults, which  already  indicate  that  the  modern 
missionary  movement  has  developed  into  an 
all-round  reconstructive  agency  for  promoting 
human  progress.  Its  ministry  as  an  instru- 
ment of  social  reform  introducing  an  era  of 
progress  has  produced  remarkable  transfor- 
mations in  ancient  customs  and  popular  tra- 
ditions.    The    improved    domestic   life,  the 


180     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

subtle  recasting  of  public  opinion,  the  quiet 
uplift  of  standards  of  character,  the  trans- 
figuration of  personal  habits,  the  stimulus  to 
personal  virtues,  are  all  illustrative  of  the 
social  helpfulness  of  missions.  The  disinte- 
gration of  cruel,  vulgar,  and  vicious  customs, 
especially  those  which  sadden  and  degrade 
the  lot  of  woman  ;  the  ministry  of  tenderness 
and  protection  rendered  to  childhood,  in- 
cluding the  increasingly  victorious  campaign 
against  footbinding;  the  fight  to  overcome 
the  awful  wrongs  of  slavery  and  the  slave- 
trade,  and  to  banish  brutal  ordeals,  human 
sacrifices,  and  cannibal  orgies ;  the  awaken- 
ing of  humane  instincts  toward  the  defec- 
tive, afflicted,  and  dependent  classes ;  and 
the  sanitary  purification  of  the  disease-breed- 
ing environment  of  uncleanly  homes  and 
pestilential  villages — are  further  examples  of 
the  tendencies  toward  social  renewal  which 
missions  inaugurate.  The  general  enlight- 
enment of  society,  which  enables  it  to  banish 
superstition,  to  discredit  brooding  fears,  to 
throw  off  the  burdens  of  idolatry  and  witch- 
craft, to  escape  from  the  incubus  of  ignorant 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      l8l 

and  childish  credulity,  to  break  the  spell  of 
the  glorified  cow,  the  transfigured  monkey, 
and  the  whole  strange  medley  of  inanimate 
fetiches,  as  well  as  the  entire  brood  of  evil 
spirits  which  throng  the  haunted  imagination 
of  the  sons  of  superstition — the  enlighten- 
ment, I  say,  which  delivers  the  life  of  a 
whole  community  from  such  delusions,  and 
their  power  to  debase  and  afflict  the  social 
life,  becomes  a  blessing  of  incalculable 
value. 

The  touch  of  missions  upon  national  life 
is  also  becoming  more  and  more  apparent. 
Educated  and  enlightened  citizenship  is  a 
national  asset  of  high  value.  The  belated 
call  of  destiny  that  now  summons  nations 
which  have  long  been  left  behind  in  the 
world's  advance  includes  a  demand  for  better 
men  in  places  of  trust,  for  more  intelligent 
agents  in  the  promotion  and  conservation  of 
public  interests,  and  for  a  more  responsive 
and  alert  citizenship  to  keep  step  in  the  march 
of  progress.  If  traditional  methods  of  leg- 
islation and  old  forms  of  administrative  pro- 
cedure are  to  be  changed  for  the  better,  if 


182     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

authority  is  to  become  a  more  sacred  trust, 
and  the  judicial  function  a  more  exacting  and 
responsible  service,  if  patriotism  is  to  be  re- 
fined, and  liberty  is  to  be  chastened  and  made 
an  instrument  of  blessing — then  a  nobler  class 
of  men  must  be  produced  and  trained  for 
this  nobler  era.  If  modern  civilization,  with 
all  its  marvellous  resources,  is  to  be  grafted 
upon  an  ancient  national  life,  and  become  a 
part  of  the  sturdy  growth  of  the  wild  tree 
which  has  borne  its  own  fruitful  blossoms  for 
ages,  then  the  nation  manifestly  needs  men  of 
intelligence,  sagacity,  discernment,  and  clear 
vision,  to  supervise,  to  execute,  and  to  adjust 
the  popular  temper  and  the  national  capabil- 
ities to  these  new  conditions.  The  alert 
Japanese  seeing  this  have  put  groups  of  their 
most  promising  young  men  to  school  in  the 
Occident ;  the  missionary,  however,  does  his 
part,  not  less  vital  and  important,  by  open- 
ing an  Occidental  school,  both  of  religious 
and  general  culture,  in  the  home  environ- 
ment of  alien  peoples,  and  by  this  means 
developing  an  indigenous  manhood  and 
womanhood,  prepared  to  serve  the  nation, 


FRESH  ANNALS   OF  THE   KINGDOM      183 

and  take  up  the  nobler  and  more  responsible 
tasks  of  the  new  age. 

Ancient  Eastern  nations,  as  well  as  those 
rude  races  which  are  just  emerging  from 
savagery,  are  old  in  years,  and  can  probably 
count  their  chronology  by  centuries,  even  by 
millenniums,  but  in  other  respects,  and  judged 
by  modern  standards,  they  are  still  immature 
and  undeveloped,  having  just  reached  that 
age  of  transition  from  arrested  national 
development  to  an  era  of  growth  under 
modern  world  conditions — corresponding  to 
the  period  which  we  are  accustomed  to  re- 
gard as  so  critical  in  individual  experience, 
when  childhood  and  youth  are  being  left 
behind,  and  the  growth  into  manhood  or 
womanhood  begins.  We  can  hardly  take  up 
a  book,  or  glance  at  an  article  in  current 
literature,  treating  of  nations  or  tribes  out- 
side the  boundaries  of  Christendom,  which 
does  not  ring  the  changes  on  the  awakening, 
quickening,  progressive,  and  reconstructive 
features  of  the  times.  Change  and  renewal, 
revolution  and  reform,  signs  and  portents, 
are  on  every  page  of  contemporary  annals. 


184     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

It  is  flowering  time  in  the  Far  East ;  the 
hour  of  mighty  renaissance  has  struck  in  the 
consciousness  of  backward  nations. 

Native  races  which  have  hitherto  been  nar- 
row and  self-centered  in  their  outlook  have 
had  their  vision  enlarged,  and  out  of  ages  of 
brooding  darkness  has  come  to  light  a  new 
world  of  which  they  begin  dimly,  yet  tena- 
ciously, to  discern  that  they  are  themselves  a 
part.  They  discover  at  the  same  time  the 
inspiring  opportunity  which  is  presented  to 
make  the  most  of  themselves,  and  to  take 
their  allotted  places  among  the  progressive 
nations  of  the  world.  It  is  at  this  critical 
period  that  the  message  of  modern  missions  is 
ready,  with  its  helpful  and  inspiring,  as  well 
as  chastening  and  refining  influence.  Na- 
tions startled  and  dazed  by  the  strange  and 
mysterious  import  of  the  times  find  that  there 
is  already  with  them  a  preacher  of  good 
tidings,  a  teacher  of  a  new  civilization,  an 
exemplar  of  a  new  code  of  living,  an  intelli- 
gent and  experienced  guide  along  the  un- 
known path,  standing  ready  to  lead  them. 
They  are  coming  to  regard  him  as  a  disinter- 


FRESH   ANNALS   OF  THE   KINGDOM      1 85 

ested  and  sympathetic  friend,  with  a  wholly- 
sincere  and  really  helpful  message,  free  from 
any  spirit  of  diplomatic  intrigue,  and  not 
imbued  with  aggressive  political  aims,  or 
with  grasping  commercial  designs.  The 
missionary  is  now  coming  to  his  own  among 
the  nations,  as  representing,  however  imper- 
fectly, a  sort  of  secondary  incarnation,  his 
person  and  his  life  strangely  luminous  with 
the  reflected  light  of  the  great  sacrifice,  reso- 
lutely identified  with  a  new  code  of  morals, 
and  charged  with  electric  currents  of  love  and 
sympathy. 

Then  again,  in  this  era  of  new  internation- 
alism we  can  discover  in  the  influence  and 
power  of  the  missionary  evangel,  great  pos- 
sibilities of  a  mediating  function  of  special 
timeliness  and  value.  It  will  not  be  marked 
by  the  formalities  of  diplomacy,  but  it  will  be 
none  the  less  persuasive  and  helpful  as  a  con- 
ciliating and  mutually  restraining  influence, 
not  altogether  dissociated,  perhaps,  from  the 
personal  character  and  the  kindly  attitude  of 
the  missionary  himself,  while  much  more  ef- 
fective in  the  Christian  spirit  it  has  infused 


186     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

into  the  temper  of  native  leadership,  and  the 
more  or  less  unconscious  sway  it  exercises 
over  responsible  statesmanship.  It  is  highly- 
important  that  the  interchange  of  diplomacy 
and  commerce  should  not  be  separated  from 
the  leaven  of  religious  sympathy,  and  that  the 
kindly  intercourse  and  mutual  trust  of  nations 
should  be  cemented  by  the  spiritual  forces  of 
Christian  brotherhood.  The  world  has  grown 
more  compact  in  the  present  generation  than 
ever  before  A  hitherto  unknown  solidarity 
is  creeping  into  national  relationships.  The 
so-called  Far  East  is  really  no  longer  the  Far 
East ;  the  brown  man  and  his  yellow  confrere 
cannot  be  considered  in  our  present  day  iso- 
lated and  negligible  factors  in  international 
affairs.  Let  us  not  forget  that  it  is  possible 
greatly  to  minimize  peril  and  unrest  in  the 
world's  arena,  if  the  brown  man  or  the  yellow 
man  should  become  a  Christian  brother,  in- 
stead of  remaining  the  bigoted,  possibly  the 
hostile  disciple  of  an  alien  faith.  China  as  a 
heathen  power,  untouched  by  Christian  in- 
fluences, may  become  a  yellow,  yes,  even  a 
blood-red  peril  to  the  world  ;  Japan  under  the 


FRESH   ANNALS   OF  THE  KINGDOM      187 

sway  of  motives  and  instincts  such  as  lurk  in 
her  past  history  may,  under  the  stimulus  of 
national  and  racial  ambition,  become  a  for- 
midable menace  to  the  world's  peace. 

The  new  Japan  has  astonished  and  aroused 
the  nations ;  the  new  China  seems  likely  to 
startle  and  profoundly  to  move  the  world. 
There  are  very  sobering  problems  lurking  in 
the  Far  East,  and  if  Christendom  would  deal 
wisely  with  them,  there  is  no  better,  safer,  and 
easier  way  to  forestall  possible  trouble  than 
to  annex  spiritually  Eastern  hearts  in  the 
bonds  of  the  Gospel,  and  thus  to  show  in  the 
spirit  of  our  own  diplomacy  that  we  are  dis- 
ciples of  the  Golden  Rule.  The  delimitation 
of  frontiers  between  the  brown  man  and  the 
white  man,  the  adjustment  of  interests  between 
the  yellow  man  and  his  Western  neighbours, 
will  be  a  far  less  perilous  task  if  across  the 
boundary-lines  eyes  that  shine  with  the  light 
of  brotherhood  look  into  eyes  that  glow  with 
the  love  of  Christ.  The  possibilities  offered 
in  meeting  an  Eastern  diplomacy  controlled 
by  the  Christian  spirit  may  be  profitably  con- 
trasted with  those  involved  in  facing  Eastern 


1 88     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

hordes,  equipped  with  all  the  facilities  of 
modern  warfare,  under  the  fierce  leadership 
of  some  Genghis  Khan  of  the  twentieth  cen- 
tury. A  new  alignment  is  being  swiftly- 
formed  among  the  nations.  Who  will  inter- 
pret the  West  to  the  East,  and  who  will  voice 
the  East  to  the  West  in  terms  each  can  under- 
stand and  appreciate  ?  Western  civilization 
or  diplomacy,  much  less  military  prowess  in 
the  spirit  of  exclusive  and  patronizing  supe- 
riority, cannot  doit ;  the  political  systems  and 
the  commercial  interests  of  the  Occident  are 
greatly  handicapped ;  the  social  codes  and 
the  intellectual  concepts  of  the  people  of  the 
West  are  all  more  or  less  alien  and  strange ; 
but  the  look,  the  voice,  the  very  tones  of  the 
inner  spirit  of  Christianity  are  suggestive  of 
brotherhood.  They  kindle  mutual  sympathy 
and  appreciation  ;  they  reconcile  hearts ;  they 
lead  instinctively  to  clasped  hands. 

One  cannot  but  be  impressed  with  the  fact 
that  great  changes  are  pending  in  the  rela- 
tionship of  the  East  and  the  West.  A  mighty 
struggle  may  be  imminent,  in  which  moral 
forces  will  have  a  vital  and  strenuous  part  to 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      189 

play.     It  will  be  worth  much  to  both  parties, 
in  case  such  an  issue  should  come,  if  instead 
of  a  wholly  alien  East,  and  an  unsympathetic 
and  self-centered  West,  we  may  have  a  basis 
of  mutual  friendship,  and  a  neutral  meeting- 
ground  of  religious  sympathy,  where  we  shall 
be  able  to  say  to  one  another,  "  Come  now, 
and  let  us  reason  together."     Perhaps  before 
we   know   it   native   statesmen  of  Christian 
training  will  step  into  high  places  of  power  in 
Far-Eastern  cabinets,  and  in  the  spirit  of  John 
Hay   serve   the   new  internationalism.     We 
have  already  good  evidence  that  the  influence 
of  missions  is  sweetening  and  sanctifying  all 
our    relations   to   alien   races.     Commercial 
methods  where  the  Christian  spirit  has  its 
own    way  are   more   considerate   and   fair ; 
statesmanship  is  more  sane  and  kindly ;  im- 
perial policies  are  more  wise  and  restrained ; 
national  tempers  are  more  patient  and  chari- 
table;    humanitarian    movements   are   more 
generous  and  spontaneous — because  of  the 
international  and   interracial   helpfulness   of 
missions.     The  menace  of  the  Moslem,  which 
was  once  curbed  at  Tours,  but  even  now 


190    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

still  threatens  in  such  secret  movements  as 
that  of  the  Sinousis  in  Africa,  may  trouble  the 
world  again,  if  a  Pan-Islamic  ambition  cannot 
eventually  be  checked  by  a  Pan-Christian 
friendship.  The  trend  of  events  in  this  new 
century  will  be  identified  with  a  solidarity  of 
races  and  a  community  of  life,  which  will  need 
as  never  before  in  history  the  brooding  in- 
fluence of  the  Beatitudes  and  the  benign  sway 
of  the  Golden  Rule. 

The  race  problems  which  already  occasion 
us  anxiety,  if  left  to  ferment,  and  to  develop 
the  latent  antagonisms  which  underlie  them, 
may  prove  to  be  a  grave  peril  to  the  peace  and 
happiness  of  the  world.  I  submit  that,  if  it 
can  have  an  opportunity  to  exercise  its  power, 
there  is  nothing  in  the  long  run  which 
will  secure  a  happier  or  a  more  effective 
solution  of  racial  perils  than  the  spirit  which 
successful  missionary  service  will  awaken 
between  the  nation  which  sends  a  group  of 
kindly  and  unselfish  men  and  women  to  min- 
ister to  human  hearts,  in  the  name  of  Christ, 
and  the  nation  which  receives  their  ministry 
with  responsive  recognition  of  its  value,  and 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      191 

at  last  gratefully  acknowledges  its  helpful- 
ness, and  realizes  effectually  its  self-propa- 
gating and  gladdening  power.  The  time  is 
surely  coming  when  great  races  eventually  to 
be  Christianized  will  render  honour  to  the 
memory  of  the  pioneer  missionaries  who  first 
came  to  them  with  the  tidings  of  Christ.  They 
will  no  more  think  of  heaping  contumely 
upon  them  than  we  good  Americans  would 
be  inclined  to  erect  some  dishonouring  and 
scornful  monument  to  our  Pilgrim  Fathers. 
In  that  vast  arena  of  new  international  rela- 
tions and  new  racial  contacts  we  may  even 
now  discover  the  Christ,  with  His  undoubted 
mastery  of  world  conditions.  He  is  con- 
trolling and  guiding  those  mighty  but  silent 
spiritual  forces  which  are  represented  in 
modern  missionary  enterprise,  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  His  own  designs  among  the 
nations.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the 
ideal  influence  which  a  kindly  and  helpful 
missionary  service  is  capable  of  exerting  may 
be  likened  to  a  new  international  beatitude 
voicing  itself  above  the  tumult  and  clash  of 
interracial  struggles.    "  Blessed  are  the  meek, 


192     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

for  they  shall  inherit  the  earth,"  might  be 
interpreted  as  signifying  with  only  a  slight 
variation  in  the  sentiment :  "  Blessed  are 
the  missionaries,  for  they  shall  win  the 
world."  "  Blessed  are  the  peacemakers,  for 
they  shall  be  called  the  children  of  God," 
might  in  its  international  aspects  be  read  : 
"  Blessed  are  the  missionaries,  for  they  shall 
be  called  the  messengers  of  God  among  the 
nations."  The  best  work  which  has  been 
done  by  Christian  nations  in  the  sphere  of 
colonial  enterprise  has  been  nobly  supple- 
mented, and  even  sometimes  happily  inspired 
by  the  missionary  spirit. 

Had  we  time  to  dwell  upon  it,  an  effective 
brief  might  be  made  out  for  missions  as  a 
stimulus  to  commerce,  and  a  helpful  factor 
in  the  development  of  trade.  The  contribu- 
tions, moreover,  which  missionaries  have 
made  to  the  scientific  knowledge  of  the 
world,  especially  by  their  service  as  explorers, 
geographers,  anthropologists,  archaeologists, 
lexicographers,  philologists,  and  sociologists, 
are  worthy  of  careful  attention.  Their  literary 
labours  as  interpreters,  historians,  students  of 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      193 

comparative  religion,  and  commentators  on 
the  contemporary  life  of  the  world,  issued  in 
our  own  as  well  as  in  foreign  languages,  are 
already  of  high  value  to  the  student  of  world 
conditions. 

There  is  still  another  outcome  of  mission 
progress,  which  is  worthy  of  a  more  extended 
notice  than  we  can  give  it  here.  We  refer  to 
its  reflex  influence  upon  home  Christianity. 
Missionary  success  has  brought  to  our  home 
Christianity  a  measure  of  spiritual  invigora- 
tion,  enhancing  its  apologetic  power,  enlarg- 
ing its  vision,  coordinating  it  with  world 
changes,  enriching  and  making  more  prac- 
tical its  theology,  interpreting  more  fully  the 
heart  of  Christ,  and  glorifying  the  outlook 
and  the  outreach  of  the  Gospel.  The  most 
conspicuous  service  in  this  sphere  which  mis- 
sions seem  to  be  rendering  just  at  present  is 
the  stimulus  they  are  giving  to  plans  of  co- 
operation and  federation  among  our  home 
Churches.  We  have  now  almost  forgotten 
the  strength  of  those  currents  of  denomina- 
tional zeal  which  a  generation  or  more  ago 
set  in  the  direction  of  a  reproduction  of  a 


194    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Baptist,  a  Methodist,  a  Presbyterian,  a  Con- 
gregational, a  Lutheran,  or  an  Episcopal 
form  of  Christianity  in  mission  fields.  The 
tendency  to  exclusiveness  has  not  altogether 
disappeared,  but  it  is  giving  place  more  and 
more  to  inclusive  plans  along  the  lines  of 
federation,  rather  than  of  segregation.  Ec- 
clesiastical delimitation  is  growing  less  at- 
tractive, and  is  coming  to  be  regarded  as  in 
fact  unnecessary  and  embarrassing.  The 
sectarian  spirit  in  mission  fields  does  not  work 
well.  It  may  have  been  in  the  past  a  useful, 
and  possibly  a  necessary  feature  of  church 
expansion  and  doctrinal  development  in 
Christendom,  but  there  is  after  all  something 
narrowing,  provincial,  and  divisive,  from  a 
missionary  standpoint,  in  the  ideal  of  a  uni- 
versal Methodism,  itself  subdivided  into  vari- 
ous branches,  and  the  same  may  be  said  of 
the  rather  imaginative  conception  of  a  world- 
embracing  but  variegated  Presbyterianism, 
or  an  all-absorbing  Episcopalianism. 

Sectarian  effort,  especially  in  its  ultra  and 
eccentric  developments,  spells  confusion  of  a 
very  embarrassing  and  troublesome  kind  in 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      1 95 

the  mind  of  the  average  convert  in  mission 
fields.  It  means  also  very  cumbersome 
methods  of  work,  and  a  needless  increase  of 
expense.  It  will  no  doubt  be  desirable  and 
necessary,  for  a  somewhat  indefinite  period, 
to  maintain  the  old  lines  here  at  home,  and  to 
work  through  denominational  boards  and 
organizations,  since  we  can  hardly  conceive 
at  present  of  any  other  way  of  enlisting  the 
energy  and  esprit  de  corps  of  the  Churches  ; 
yet,  while  this  may  be  wise,  there  seems  to 
be  no  good  reason  why  we  should  not  all 
cordially  cooperate  in  minimizing  denomina- 
tional differences,  and  magnifying  evangel- 
ical agreement.  In  the  foreign  field,  how- 
ever, it  would  be  wiser,  according  to  an 
almost  universal  consensus  of  missionary 
opinion,  for  the  Church  to  give  up  trying  to 
perpetuate  the  scholastic  doctrinal  contro- 
versies, and  the  historic  denominational  dis- 
tinctions of  the  West.  The  federation  idea 
at  home  is  a  hopeful  move  in  the  direction  of 
a  larger,  simpler,  more  inclusive,  and  more 
cooperative  Christianity.  We  must  expect 
that  the  Church  of  Christ  in  mission  fields 


196     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

will  go  a  step  farther,  and  seek  for  spiritual 
freedom,  and  plan  to  a  greater  or  less  extent 
for  a  church  development  released  from  the 
denominational  restraints  of  the  West. 

The  Churches  of  mission  fields,  happily, 
have  as  yet  escaped  the  embarrassments  of 
State  control,  and  we  must  take  it  for  granted 
that  under  the  influence  of  a  fresh  and  un- 
trammelled comprehension  of  the  Gospel  in 
its  Biblical  simplicity  they  will  formulate  for 
themselves  a  simple  creedal  basis,  with  a 
more  or  less  modified  polity,  suited  to  their 
environment  and  tastes,  and  thus  enter  upon 
their  own  course  of  spiritual  culture  and 
evangelistic  service.  Our  particular  formulae 
of  doctrine,  our  various  elaborate  systems  of 
polity,  our  methods  of  worship  and  work, 
and  our  wealth  of  spiritual  experience,  as 
embodied  in  our  literature  and  history,  will 
no  doubt  be  invaluable  in  their  suggestive- 
ness,  but  we  must  not  be  disappointed  if 
mission  Churches  should  follow  ecclesiastical 
lines  of  their  own  choosing,  and  interpret 
Christian  truth  in  terms  of  their  individual 
insight.     They  will  have  their  own  problems 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      197 

and  perils,  and  they  must  find  their  way  to 
a  goal  of  spiritual  stability  and  impregnable 
conviction,  not  through  servile  imitation  of 
the  West,  but  along  lines  of  personal  expe- 
rience and  spiritual  growth,  in  prayerful  de- 
pendence upon  God,  who  giveth  life,  light, 
and  guidance  to  all  who  seek  His  aid.  The 
watchword  of  missionary  ecclesiasticism  has 
become  a  broadly  evangelical  unification  of 
creed  and  polity,  or  if  not  altogether  as 
radical  as  this,  then  at  least  a  practical 
cooperation  and  unity  of  working  agencies. 
An  undenominational  Christianity  for  all 
Japan,  for  all  Korea,  for  all  China,  for  all 
India,  would  seem  to  be  the  comprehensive, 
though  as  yet  distant,  ideal  toward  the  reali- 
zation of  which  missionary  and  native  leaders 
are  working. 

This  development  in  mission  fields  is  con- 
fessedly exerting  a  powerful  reflex  influence 
in  shaping  the  tendency  of  ecclesiastical 
movements  in  the  home  Church.  The  re- 
union of  Christendom,  so  far  at  least  as  its 
Protestant  elements  are  concerned,  has  long 
been  sought  after  wistfully,  discussed  academ- 


198     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

ically,  idealized  rhetorically,  and  cherished 
vaguely  as  a  millennial  hope,  in  religious 
circles  at  home ;  but  in  our  foreign  mission 
fields  the  ideal  has  begun  to  throb  in  the  heart 
life  of  brothers  in  Christ,  of  whatever  Church 
fold  or  whatever  national  allegiance.  It  has 
stretched  itself  out  in  hands  of  cooperation ; 
it  has  realized  in  a  measure  the  possibility 
of  such  a  consummation,  and  has  stirred  the 
sensibilities  of  Christendom  to  practical  effort 
in  the  same  direction.  Is  the  reunion  of 
Christendom,  we  cannot  help  asking,  finally 
to  come  as  a  reward  for  the  missionary  de- 
votion and  sacrifice  of  the  Church  ? 

Once  more,  is  there  not  destined  to  be  a 
reflex  gain  of  as  yet  unknown  value  in  the 
contribution  which  our  mission  fields  in  their 
spiritual  growth  and  fully  developed  culture 
may  make  to  the  sum  total  of  Christian  his- 
tory, and  the  cumulative  impress  of  Chris- 
tianity upon  mankind  ?  It  was  the  judgment 
of  some  of  the  Western  delegates  to  the 
recent  conferences  at  Tokyo  and  Shanghai 
that  if,  by  any  almost  unthinkable  chance, 
some  disastrous  disability,  some  enfeebling 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      199 

collapse,  should  come  to  Western  Christen- 
dom, Oriental  Christians,  even  though  as  yet 
but  a  Gideon's  Band,  are  already  prepared 
to  fight  a  good  fight  on  behalf  of  Chris- 
tianity, and  lead  it  on  to  its  final  victory.  It 
is  a  question  whether  there  is  not  in  the 
Oriental  nature,  at  its  best,  a  capacity  for 
glorifying  religious  life,  especially  in  its  as- 
pects of  reverential  worship,  of  contemplative 
insight,  of  sympathetic  attachment  to  the 
unseen,  and  of  responsive  loyalty  to  Christ, 
which  may  enable  it  to  contribute  an  added 
charm  and  a  winsome  attractiveness  to  the 
Christian  world.  Bishop  Westcott  once  re- 
marked that,  in  his  judgment,  the  adequate 
commentary  upon  St.  John  would  never  be 
written  until  India  is  converted.  We  have 
reached  surely  a  psychological  moment  in 
the  unfoldings  of  Christian  history. 

We  have  been  accustomed  to  look  upon 
foreign  missions  as  wholly  sacrificial  on  the 
part  of  Christendom,  and  with  no  prospect 
of  adequate  return.  The  Churches  of  the 
home  land  have  been  regarded  as  merely 
generous,  possibly  to  some  minds  magnani- 


200    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

mous,  bearers  of  gifts  to  the  non-Christian 
races,  with  little  hope  of  any  present  or  per- 
sonal reward.  The  idea  that  anything  of 
stimulating  helpfulness  or  practical  useful- 
ness would  be  received  in  exchange  has 
hardly  been  entertained ;  but  of  late  quite  a 
new  conception  has  seemed  to  enter  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  Church.  The  need  of  in- 
spirational vigour  in  Western  Christianity  is 
beginning  to  be  keenly  felt ;  will  it  come  to 
us  from  our  mission  fields  ?  It  is  confessedly 
an  age  of  intellectual  unrest,  unsettling  doubt, 
and  grave  peril  to  the  spiritual  life ;  shall  we 
have  a  lesson  of  faith,  a  message  of  hope,  an 
example  of  loyalty,  a  bugle-call  to  courage, 
from  the  Christians  of  other  lands?  Is  Ex 
Oriente  Lux  to  come  true  once  more  ?  Is  it 
not  an  hour  when  we  may  wisely,  and  with 
devout  expectation,  adapt  Tennyson's  prayer, 
applying  it  to  the  whole  Oriental  world  ? 

"O  Father,  touch  the  East,  and  light 
The  light  that  shone  when  Hope  was  born." 

Who  can  adequately  estimate   the   effect 
upon  the  home  Church  of  great  evangelical 


FRESH   ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM      201 

awakenings  in  mission  lands — mighty  spirit- 
ual movements  which  would  touch  the  heart 
of  all  India,  arrest  the  attention  of  all  China, 
win  the  allegiance  of  all  Korea,  and  capture 
the  soul  of  Japan  ?  Are  we  prepared  as  yet 
fully  to  appreciate  the  measure  of  spiritual 
vitality  which  Christianity  has  derived  from 
the  contemplation  of  martyrdom  as  a  test 
which  can  still  be  successfully  applied  to  the 
Christianity  of  modern  days,  as  was  exempli- 
fied in  that  dread  ordeal  of  1900  in  China? 
It  is  worthy  of  note,  too,  that  Chinese  Chris- 
tians were  selected  to  bear  this  test,  rather 
than  the  cultured  children  of  light  in  Chris- 
tendom. God,  surely,  seems  to  believe  in 
the  mission  convert,  and  is  ready  to  trust 
him.  Then  again,  missions  are  offering  an 
enlarged  and  inspirational  sphere  of  activity 
to  the  fresh  and  youthful  enthusiasm  of  the 
Church.  The  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation, and  so  also  the  Young  Women's,  the 
Student  Volunteer  Movement,  the  Society 
of  Christian  Endeavour,  and  other  similar 
organizations  which  have  given  scope  to 
much  of  the  latent  energy  of  the  Church, 


202     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

have  been  led  to  a  deepening  of  consecration, 
a  broadening  of  aim,  and  an  enthusiasm  in 
service,  especially  as  rendered  among  young 
and  impressionable  hearts  in  the  Orient, 
which  has  assuredly  quickened  the  vitality 
of  the  Churches.  There  is  also  much  latent 
energy  which  the  Church  needs  in  the  awak- 
ening evangelical  and  evangelistic  spirit  of 
the  Orient.  Taking  the  Oriental  at  his  best, 
and  regarding  him  not  as  a  hopeless  spiritual 
degenerate,  but  rather  as  a  man  of  immense 
religious  capabilities,  may  we  not  hope  that 
as  a  believer  in  Christ  he  will  reinforce  Chris- 
tianity in  any  possible  struggle  which  may 
be  coming,  and  prove  a  valued  and  valiant 
defender  of  its  mystical  claims  ? 

If  this  seems  like  idealizing  missions,  read 
again  your  Isaiah,  turn  the  leaves  of  your 
Psalms,  seek  the  "  goodly  fellowship  of  the 
prophets  "  in  their  exultant  moods,  when  they 
sing  their  songs  of  hope  and  cheer.  God 
Himself  is  surely  the  great  idealizer  of  mis- 
sions in  both  the  Old  and  New  Testaments. 
We  can  trace  as  yet  only  in  dim  outline  the 
vision  which  He  unfolds  in  His   prophetic 


FRESH  ANNALS  OF  THE  KINGDOM     203 

Word.  The  conversion  of  the  Gentile  world 
is  still  to  us  an  obscure,  and  somewhat  un- 
real contingency,  regarded  by  many  as  wholly 
visionary  within  the  limits  of  our  present  age, 
though  perhaps  possible  in  the  millennium. 
We  are  not,  to  be  sure,  so  dazed  and  startled 
by  the  unflinching  tones  of  Scripture  on  this 
subject  as  were  the  Jews  when  Paul  preached 
to  them  the  incoming  of  the  Gentiles,  but  to 
many  in  the  Church  of  to-day  the  whole  ques- 
tion of  missionary  duty  and  success,  if  not 
tinged  occasionally  with  something  like 
Jewish  resentment,  is  one  of  languid  interest 
or  passive  scepticism. 

It  becomes,  then,  one  of  the  highest  and 
timeliest  duties  of  the  pastorate  in  this  age 
to  arrest  the  attention,  awaken  the  sympathy, 
and  enlist  the  zeal  of  the  Churches  in  the 
world  interests  and  the  world  progress  of  the 
kingdom.  I  think  I  discover  in  our  theolog- 
ical seminaries  a  freshly  responsive  attitude 
to  this  cosmopolitan  opportunity  of  the  age. 
Men  are  entering  the  ministry  as  servants  of 
the  kingdom  both  at  home  and  abroad. 
They  are  cultivating  a  sense  of  partnership 


204     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

with  Christ  in  His  great  campaign  for  world 
victory,  and  whether  they  serve  in  the  home 
Church  or  the  foreign  field,  they  serve  in  the 
spirit  of  allegiance  to  a  Master  who  loves  all 
men,  and  who  seeks  the  help  of  His  follow- 
ers in  winning  the  heart  of  the  race,  and  in 
making  eventually  a  godlike  humanity  in  a 
redeemed  world. 


APPENDIX 

THE    MESSAGE    OF    CHRISTI- 
ANITY TO  OTHER  RELIGIONS 

{An  Address  delivered  at  the  Parliament  of  Re- 
ligions, Chicago,  Illinois,  l8pj) 


"  In  Christianity  the  soul  breathes  the  native  air  of  the  world 
for  which  it  was  born,  and  meets  the  announcement  and  expe- 
rience of  the  truth  for  which  it  was  made.  Consequently  it  is 
the  lower  elements  in  the  soul's  life  that  draw  it  away  from 
Christ,  while  the  worthiest  elements  are  responsive  to  His 
touch.  Christ  calls  for  the  best  and  worthiest  that  man  is  capa- 
ble of,  and  every  one  that  is  of  the  truth  hears  His  voice.  This 
power  in  Christianity  to  win  the  response  of  the  best  in  man  is 
good  evidence  that  the  voice  is  indeed  the  voice  of  truth. 

"  Truth  becomes  effective  by  being  felt  to  be  truth.  Stated  in 
accurate  forms  it  has  a  very  neat  appearance,  and  is  convenient 
for  reference  and  consultation,  but  there  is  no  inward  necessity 
that  we  should  do  anything  about  it.  Not  until  some  one  feels 
that  something  is  true  does  that  something  go  out  with  effective 
power  into  the  world. 

"  The  power  of  Christianity  resides  in  the  twofold  fact  that 
Christianity  is  true,  and  is  felt  as  true.  There  is  reality,  and 
there  is  sense  of  reality, — and  then  there  is  power.  The  reality 
that  we  have  in  Christ  is  worthy  to  be  profoundly  felt,  and  the 
sense  of  such  reality  as  this  ought  to  be  sufficient  to  move  the 
world.  When  it  was  anything  like  adequate,  it  has  moved  the 
world."— William  Newton  Clarke,  D.  D. 


APPENDIX 

(Address  at  the  Parliament  of  Religions) 

THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY  TO 
OTHER  RELIGIONS 

CHRISTIANITY  speaks  in  the  name 
of  God.  To  Him  it  owes  its  exist- 
ence, and  the  deep  secret  of  its  dig- 
nity and  power  is  that  it  reveals  Him.  It 
would  be  effrontery  for  it  to  speak  simply 
upon  its  own  responsibility,  or  even  in  the 
name  of  reason.  It  has  no  naturalistic  philos- 
ophy of  its  own  evolution  to  propound.  It 
has  a  message  from  God  to  deliver.  It  is  not 
itself  a  philosophy  ;  it  is  a  religion.  It  is  not 
earth-born  ;  it  is  God-wrought.  It  comes  not 
from  man,  but  from  God,  and  is  intensely 
alive  with  His  power,  alert  with  His  love, 
benign  with  His  goodness,  radiant  with  His 
light,  charged  with  His  truth.  It  is,  there- 
fore, sent  with  His  message,  inspired  with 
His  energy,  regnant  with  His  wisdom,  instinct 
with  the  gift  of  spiritual  healing,  and  mighty 

with  supreme  authority. 
207 


208     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

It  has  a  mission  among  men  whenever  or 
wherever  it  finds  them,  which  is  as  majestic  as 
creation,  as  marvellous  as  spiritual  existence, 
and  as  full  of  mysterious  meaning  as  eternity. 
It  finds  its  focus  and  as  well  its  radiating  cen- 
tre in  the  personality  of  Jesus  Christ,  its  great 
Revealer  and  Teacher,  to  whom  before  His 
advent  all  the  fingers  of  light  pointed,  and 
from  whom  since  His  incarnation  all  the 
brightness  of  the  day  has  shone.  It  has  a 
further  and  supplemental  historic  basis  in  the 
Holy  Scriptures  which  God  has  been  pleased 
to  give  through  inspired  writers  chosen  and 
commissioned  by  Him.  Its  message  is  much 
more  than  Judaism  ;  it  is  infinitely  more  than 
the  revelation  of  nature  ;  it  is  even  more  than 
the  best  teachings  of  all  other  religions  com- 
bined, for  whatever  is  good  and  true  in  other 
religious  systems  is  found  in  full  and  authori- 
tative form  in  Christianity.  It  has  wrought 
in  love,  with  the  touch  of  regeneration,  with 
the  inspiration  of  prophetic  vision,  in  the  mas- 
tery of  spiritual  control,  and  by  the  transform- 
ing power  of  the  divine  indwelling,  until  its 
own  best  evidence  is  what  it  has  done  to  up- 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY      209 

lift  and  purify  wherever  it  has  been  welcomed 
among  men. 

I  say  welcomed,  for  Christianity  must  be 
received  in  order  to  accomplish  its  mission. 
It  is  addressed  to  the  reason  and  the  heart  of 
man,  but  does  no  violence  to  liberty.  Its 
limitations  are  not  in  its  own  nature,  but  in 
the  freedom  which  God  has  planted  in  man. 
It  is  not  to  be  judged,  therefore,  by  what  it 
has  achieved  in  the  world,  except  as  the  world 
has  voluntarily  received  it.  The  sins  of 
Christian  nations  cannot  be  rightly  charged 
to  Christianity,  for  it  does  not  sanction,  but 
forbids  them.  So-called  Christian  nations 
sometimes  do  frightfully  unchristian  acts, 
or  at  least  allow  them  to  be  done,  and  for  this 
they  will  be  called  to  give  an  account  by  the 
God  of  justice  and  judgment.  Where  Chris- 
tianity is  not  known,  or  where  it  has  been  ig- 
nored and  rejected,  it  withholds  the  evidence 
of  its  power,  but  where  it  has  been  worthily 
accepted  it  does  not  shrink  from  the  test, 
but  rather  welcomes  scrutiny.  Its  attitude 
toward  mankind  is  marked  by  gracious 
urgency,  not  compulsion ;  by  gentle  conde- 


2IO     THE  NEW   HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

scension,  not  pride ;  by  kindly  ministry,  not 
harshness ;  by  faithful  warning,  not  taunting 
reproaches ;  by  plain  instruction,  not  argu- 
ment; by  gentle  and  quiet  command,  not 
noisy  harangue;  by  limitless  promises  to 
faith,  not  spectacular  gifts  to  sight. 

It  has  a  message  of  supreme  import  to 
man,  fresh  from  the  heart  of  God.  It  records 
the  great  spiritual  facts  of  human  history  ;  it 
announces  the  perils  and  needs  of  man  ;  it  re- 
veals the  mighty  resources  of  redemption  ;  it 
solves  the  problems  and  blesses  the  discipline 
of  life ;  it  teaches  the  whole  secret  of  regenera- 
tion and  hope  and  moral  triumph ;  it  brings 
to  the  world  the  cooperation  of  divine  wisdom 
in  the  great  struggle  with  the  dark  mysteries 
of  misery  and  suffering.  Its  message  to  the 
world  is  so  full  of  beneficent  inspiration,  so 
resplendent  with  light,  so  charged  with  power, 
so  effective  in  its  ministry  that  its  mission  can 
be  characterized  only  by  the  use  of  the  most 
majestic  symbolism  of  the  natural  universe. 
It  is  indeed,  as  revealed  in  the  person  of  its 
Founder,  the  "  Sun  of  righteousness  arising 
with  healing  in  His  wings." 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY      211 

We  are  asked  now  to  consider  the  message 
of  Christianity  to  other  religions.  If  it  has  a 
message  to  a  sinful  world,  it  must  also  have 
a  message  to  other  religions  which  are  seek- 
ing to  minister  to  the  same  fallen  race  and  to 
accomplish  in  their  own  way  and  by  diverse 
methods  the  very  mission  God  has  designed 
should  be  Christianity's  privilege  and  high 
function  to  discharge. 

Let  us  seek  now  to  catch  the  spirit  of  that 
message,  and  to  indicate  in  brief  outline  its 
purport.  We  must  be  content  simply  to  give 
the  message ;  the  limits  of  this  paper  forbid 
any  attempt  to  vindicate  it,  or  to  demon- 
strate its  historic  integrity,  its  heavenly  wis- 
dom, and  its  excellent  glory. 

THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  MESSAGE 
Its  spirit  is  full  of  simple  sincerity,  exalted 
dignity,  and  sweet  unselfishness.  It  aims  to 
impart  a  blessing,  rather  than  to  challenge  a 
comparison.  It  is  not  so  anxious  to  vindicate 
itself  as  to  confer  its  benefits.  It  is  not  so 
solicitous  to  secure  supreme  honour  for  itself 
as  to  win  its  way  to  the  heart.     It  does  not 


212     THE  NEW   HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

seek  to  taunt,  or  disparage,  or  humiliate  a 
rival,  but  rather  to  subdue  by  love,  attract  by 
its  own  excellence,  and  supplant  by  virtue  of 
its  own  incomparable  superiority.  It  is  itself 
incapable  of  a  spirit  of  rivalry,  because  of  its 
own  invincible  right  to  reign.  It  has  no  use 
for  a  sneer,  it  can  dispense  with  contempt,  it 
carries  no  weapons  of  violence,  it  is  not  given 
to  argument,  it  is  incapable  of  trickery  or 
deceit,  and  it  repudiates  cant.  It  relies  ever 
upon  its  own  intrinsic  merit,  and  bases  all  its 
claims  upon  its  right  to  be  heard  and  hon- 
oured. 

Its  miraculous  evidence  is  rather  an  excep- 
tion than  a  rule.  It  was  a  sign  to  help  weak 
faith.  It  was  a  concession  made  in  a  spirit 
of  condescension.  Miracles  suggest  mercy 
quite  as  much  as  they  announce  mastery. 
When  we  consider  the  unlimited  scope  of 
divine  power,  and  the  ease  with  which  signs 
and  wonders  might  have  been  multiplied  in 
bewildering  variety  and  impressiveness,  we 
are  conscious  of  a  rigid  conservation  of  energy 
and  a  distinct  repudiation  of  the  spectacular. 
The  mystery  of  Christian  history  is  the  sparing 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY      213 

way  in  which  Christianity  has  used  its  re- 
sources. It  is  a  tax  upon  faith  which  is  often 
painfully  severe  to  note  the  apparent  lack  of 
energy  and  dash  and  resistless  force  in  the 
seemingly  slow  advances  of  our  holy  religion. 
Doubtless  God  has  His  reasons,  but  in  the 
meanwhile  we  cannot  but  recognize  in  Chris- 
tianity a  spirit  of  mysterious  reserve,  of  mar- 
vellous patience,  of  subdued  undertone,  of 
purposeful  restraint.  It  does  not  "  cry  nor 
lift  up,  nor  cause  its  voice  to  be  heard  in  the 
street."  Centuries  come  and  go,  and  Chris- 
tianity touches  only  portions  of  the  earth,  but 
wherever  it  touches  it  transfigures.  It  seems 
to  despise  material  adjuncts,  and  to  count 
only  those  victories  worth  having  which  are 
won  through  direct  spiritual  contact  with  the 
individual  soul.  Its  relation  to  other  religions 
has  been  characterized  by  singular  reserve, 
and  its  progress  has  been  marked  by  an  unos- 
tentatious dignity,  which  is  in  harmony  with 
the  majestic  attitude  of  God,  its  Author,  to  all 
false  gods  who  have  claimed  divine  honours, 
and  sought  to  usurp  the  place  which  was  His 
alone. 


214     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

Christianity  is  said  to  be  intolerant.  I  do 
not  think  the  word  is  well  chosen ;  it  would 
be  more  true  to  say  that  Christianity  is  uncom- 
promising, and  it  is  uncompromising  because 
it  is  true.  It  is  as  absurd  to  complain  of  the 
uncompromising  nature  of  Christianity  as  it 
is  to  speak  contemptuously  of  the  inflexible 
character  of  natural  law.  Christianity  at  the 
same  time  that  it  is  uncompromising  is  toler- 
ant of  the  convictions  of  others  in  a  kindly 
and  generous  spirit,  and,  if  true  to  itself,  it 
would  be  the  last  religion  in  the  world  to  stifle 
liberty  of  conscience,  or  deny  all  proper  free- 
dom of  speech.  Its  tolerance  should  ever  be 
marked  by  gentleness,  patience,  and  courtesy ; 
its  exclusiveness  should  be  characterized  by 
dignity,  magnanimity,  and  charity.  It  should 
be  the  steel  hand  of  truth  encased  in  the 
velvet  glove  of  love. 

We  are  right  then  in  speaking  of  the  spirit 
of  this  message  as  dissociated  from  the  com- 
monplace sentiment  of  rivalry,  entirely  above 
the  use  of  spectacular  or  meretricious  meth- 
ods, infinitely  removed  from  all  mere  device 
or  dramatic  effect,  wholly  free  from  cant  or 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY     215 

double-facedness,with  no  anxiety  for  alliance 
with  worldly  power  or  social  eclat,  caring  more 
for  a  place  of  influence  in  a  humble  heart 
than  for  a  seat  of  power  on  a  royal  throne, 
and  as  utterly  intent  upon  claiming  the  lov- 
ing allegiance  of  the  soul,  and  securing  the 
moral  transformation  of  character,  in  order 
that  its  own  spirit  and  principles  may  sway 
the  spiritual  life  of  men. 

It  speaks  then  to  other  religions  with  un- 
qualified frankness  and  plainness  based  upon 
its  incontrovertible  claim  to  a  hearing;  it 
has  nothing  to  conceal,  but  rather  invites 
to  inquiry  and  investigation ;  it  recognizes 
promptly  and  cordially  whatever  is  worthy 
of  respect  in  other  religious  systems ;  it  ac- 
knowledges the  undoubted  sincerity  of  per- 
sonal conviction,  and  the  intense  and  pathetic 
earnestness  of  moral  struggle,  in  the  case  of 
many  serious  souls  who,  like  the  Athenians 
of  old,  "worship  in  ignorance";  it  warns 
and  persuades  and  commands,  as  is  its  right ; 
it  speaks  as  Paul  did  in  the  presence  of  cul- 
tured heathenism  on  Mars  Hill,  of  that  ap- 
pointed  day   in  which   the  world   must  be 


216     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

judged,  and  of  "  that  man  "  by  whom  it  is  to 
be  judged ;  it  echoes  and  reechoes  its  in- 
variable and  inflexible  call  to  repentance ;  it 
requires  acceptance  of  its  moral  standards, 
and  exacts  submission,  loyalty,  reverence, 
and  humility. 

All  this  it  does  with  a  superb  and  un- 
wavering tone  of  quiet  insistence.  It  often 
presses  its  claim  with  instruction,  appeal,  and 
tender  urgency,  yet  in  it  all  and  through  it 
all  would  be  recognized  a  clear,  resonant, 
predominant  tone  of  uncompromising  insist- 
ence, revealing  that  supreme  personal  will 
which  originated  Christianity,  and  in  whose 
name  it  ever  speaks.  It  delivers  its  message 
with  an  air  of  untroubled  confidence  and 
quiet  mastery.  There  is  no  anxiety  about 
precedence,  no  undue  care  for  externals,  no 
apology  for  mysteries,  no  bargaining  for 
compliments,  no  possibility  of  being  patron- 
ized, no  undignified  spirit  of  competition.  It 
speaks  rather  with  the  consciousness  of  that 
simple,  natural,  incomparable,  measureless 
supremacy  which  quickly  disarms  rivalry, 
and  in  the  end  challenges  the  admiration 


THE   MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY     21 7 

and  compels  the  submission  of  hearts  free 
from  malice  and  guile. 

THE  PURPORT  OF  THE  MESSAGE 
This  being  the  spirit  of  the  message  let  us 
inquire  as  to  its  purport.  There  is  one  im- 
mensely preponderating  element  here  which 
pervades  the  whole  content  of  the  message 
— it  is  love  for  man.  Christianity  is  full  of  it. 
This  is  its  supreme  meaning  to  the  world — 
not  that  love  eclipses  or  supplants  every  other 
attribute  in  God's  character,  but  that  it  glori- 
fies and  more  perfectly  reveals  and  interprets 
the  nature  of  God  and  the  history  of  His 
dealings  with  man.  The  object  of  this  love 
must  be  carefully  noted — it  is  mankind — the 
race  considered  as  individuals  or  as  a  whole. 
Christianity  unfolds  a  message  to  other  relig- 
ions which  emphasizes  this  heavenly  prin- 
ciple. It  reveals  therein  the  secret  of  its 
power  and  the  unique  wonder  of  its  whole 
redemptive  system.  "  Never  man  spake  like 
this  man,"  was  said  of  Christ.  Never  re- 
ligion spake  like  this  religion,  may  be  said 
of  Christianity. 


218     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

The  Christian  system  was  conceived  in  love ; 
it  is  wrought  out  by  love ;  it  brings  the  pro- 
vision of  love  to  fallen  man ;  it  administers 
its  marvellous  functions  in  love  ;  it  introduces 
man  into  an  atmosphere  of  love ;  it  gives 
him  the  inspiration,  the  joy,  the  fruition  of 
love  ;  it  leads  at  last  into  the  realm  of  eternal 
love.  While  compassing  this  end,  it,  at  the 
same  time,  convicts  of  sin  ;  it  melts  the  soul 
in  humility  ;  it  quickens  gratitude  ;  it  purifies 
and  sanctifies  the  heart ;  it  glorifies  the  char- 
acter ;  it  inspires  to  obedience  ;  it  implants 
the  instincts  of  service  ;  it  introduces  a  regen- 
erating agent  into  social  life ;  it  teaches  un- 
selfishness as  the  great  lesson  of  heaven  to 
earth,  and  it  proposes  love  as  itself  the  su- 
preme remedy  for  the  woes  and  wrongs  of 
the  world.  It  has  also  its  message  of  warn- 
ing and  judgment,  which  must  not  be  ignored. 
It  speaks  in  the  name  of  justice,  holiness,  and 
eternal  sovereignty  of  the  final  issue  of  that 
folly  which  rejects  its  proposals  and  appeals, 
and  defies  its  authority.  In  this  it  also  re- 
veals God  and  vindicates  His  honour,  and  it 
is  sadly  true  that  he  who  slights  its  message 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY      219 

of    love    must    finally   face   its    sentence    of 
condemnation. 

Let  us  look  at  this  message  more  in  detail. 
In  presenting  it  under  present  auspices  our 
purpose  is  not  so  distinctively  controversial 
as  declarative.  We  do  not  seek  to  challenge 
or  rebuke,  much  less  to  denounce  and  con- 
demn other  religions,  but  rather  to  unfold  in 
calm  statement  the  essential  features  of  the 
message  which  Christianity  is  charged  to 
deliver.  This  is  not  the  place  or  time  to  sit 
in  judgment ;  it  is  rather  an  opportunity  for 
each  religion  to  unfold  its  distinctive  tenets, 
and  to  declare  its  innermost  secrets  of  wisdom 
and  spiritual  helpfulness  to  man,  in  that  spirit 
of  courtesy  which  is  becoming  in  what  may 
be  regarded  as  a  conference  upon  compara- 
tive religion.  We  who  love  and  revere 
Christianity  believe  that  it  declares  the  true 
counsel  of  God,  and  we  are  content  to  rest 
our  case  upon  the  simple  statement  of  its 
historic  facts,  its  spiritual  teaching,  and  its 
unrivalled  ministry  to  the  world.  Christi- 
anity is  its  own  best  evidence  ;  its  very  pres- 
ence is  full  of  power ;  its  spiritual  contribu- 


220     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

tion  to  the  thought  of  the  world  is  its  su- 
preme credential ;  its  exemplification  in  the 
life  of  its  Founder,  and,  to  a  less  conspicuous 
degree  in  the  lives  of  all  who  are  truly  in  His 
likeness,  is  its  unanswerable  apologetic. 

I  have  sought  to  give  the  essential  outlines 
of  this  immortal  message  of  Christianity  by 
grouping  its  leading  characteristics  in  a  series 
of  code  words  which  when  presented  in  com- 
bination give  the  distinctive  signal  of  the 
Christian  religion  which  has  waved  aloft  in 
sunshine  and  storm  during  all  the  centuries 
since  the  New  Testament  Scriptures  were 
given  to  man. 

FATHERHOOD 
The  initial  word  which  we  place  in  this 
signal  code  of  Christianity  is  Fatherhood. 
This  may  have  a  strange  sound  to  some 
ears,  but  to  the  Christian  it  is  full  of  sweet- 
ness and  dignity.  It  simply  means  that  the 
creative  act  of  God,  so  far  as  our  human 
family  is  concerned,  was  done  in  the  spirit  of 
fatherly  love  and  goodness.  He  created  us 
in  His  likeness,  and  to  express  this  idea  of 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY      221 

spiritual  resemblance  and  tender  relationship 
the  symbolical  term  of  fatherhood  is  used. 
When  Christ  taught  us  to  pray,  "  Our 
Father,"  in  the  spirit  not  only  of  natural  but 
of  gracious  sonship,  He  gave  us  a  lesson 
which  transcends  human  philosophy,  and  has 
in  it  so  much  of  the  height  and  depth  of  di- 
vine feeling  that  human  reason  has  hardly 
dared  fully  to  receive,  much  less  to  originate, 
the  conception. 

BROTHERHOOD 
A  second  word  which  is  representative  in 
the  Christian  message  is,  Brotherhood.  This 
exists  in  two  senses— there  is  the  universal 
brotherhood  of  man  to  man,  as  children  of 
one  Father  in  whose  likeness  the  whole 
family  is  created,  and  the  spiritual  brother- 
hood of  union  in  Christ.  We  are  all  brother 
men,  would  that  we  were  also  all  brother  Chris- 
tians. Here  again  the  suggestion  is  love  as 
the  rule  and  sign  of  human  as  well  as  Chris- 
tian fellowship.  The  world  has  drifted  far 
away  from  this  ideal  of  brotherhood ;  it  has 
been  repudiated  in  some  quarters  even  in  the 


222     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

name  of  religion,  and  it  seems  clear  that  it 
will  never  be  fully  recognized  and  exempli- 
fied except  as  the  spirit  of  Christ  assumes  its 
sway  over  the  hearts  of  men. 

REDEMPTION 
The  next  code  word  of  Christianity  is  Re- 
demption. We  use  it  here  in  the  sense  of  a 
purpose  on  God's  part  to  deliver  man  from 
sin,  and  to  make  a  universal  provision  for 
that  end,  which  if  rightly  used  insures  the  re- 
sult. I  need  not  remind  you  that  this  pur- 
pose was  conceived  in  love.  God  as  Re- 
deemer has  taken  a  gracious  attitude  toward 
man  from  the  beginnings  of  history,  and  He  is 
"  not  far  from  every  one  "  in  the  immanence 
and  omnipresence  of  His  love.  Redemption 
is  a  world-embracing  term ;  it  is  not  limited 
to  any  age  or  class.  Its  potentiality  is  world- 
wide ;  its  efficiency  is  unrestrained,  except  as 
man  himself  limits  it ;  its  application  is  de- 
termined by  the  sovereign  wisdom  of  God, 
its  Author,  who  deals  with  each  individual  as 
a  possible  candidate  for  redemption,  and  de- 
cides his  destiny  in  accordance  with  his  spir- 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY     223 

itual  attitude  toward  Christ.  Where  Christ 
is  unknown  God  still  exercises  His  sover- 
eignty, although  He  has  been  pleased  to 
maintain  a  significant  reserve  as  to  the  possi- 
bility, extent,  and  spiritual  tests  of  redemp- 
tion where  trust  is  based  upon  God's  mercy 
in  general,  rather  than  upon  His  mercy  as 
specially  revealed  in  Christ.  We  know  from 
His  Word  that  Christ's  sacrifice  is  infinite. 
God  can  apply  its  saving  virtue  to  one  who 
intelligently  accepts  it  in  faith,  or  to  an  infant 
who  receives  its  benefits  as  a  sovereign  gift, 
or  to  one  who  not  having  known  of  Christ  so 
casts  himself  in  penitence  and  dependence 
upon  God's  mercy  that  divine  wisdom  sees 
good  reason  to  grant  forgiveness,  and  apply  to 
the  soul  the  saving  power  of  the  great  sacrifice. 

INCARNATION 
Another  cardinal  idea  in  the  Christian  sys- 
tem is  Incarnation — God  clothing  Himself  in 
human  form  and  coming  into  living  touch 
with  mankind.  This  He  did  in  the  person  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth.  It  is  a  mighty  mystery, 
and  Christianity  would  never  dare  assert  it, 


224     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

except  as  God  has  authorized  and  enjoined 
it.  Granted  the  purpose  of  God  to  reveal 
Himself  in  visible  form  to  man,  He  must  be 
free  to  choose  His  own  method.  He  did  not 
consult  human  reason.  He  did  not  ask  the 
advice  of  philosophy.  He  did  not  seek  the 
permission  of  ordinary  laws.  He  came  in 
spiritual  majesty  in  the  glory  of  the  super- 
natural, but  He  entered  the  realm  of  human 
life  through  the  humble  gateway  of  nature. 
His  Incarnate  Messenger  came  not  only  to 
reveal  God,  but  to  bring  Him  into  contact 
with  human  life.  He  came  to  assume  per- 
manent relations  to  the  race.  His  brief  life 
among  us  upon  earth  was  for  a  purpose,  and 
when  that  was  accomplished,  still  retaining 
His  humanity,  He  ascended  to  resume  His 
kingly  dominion  in  the  heavens. 

ATONEMENT 
We  are  brought  now  to  another  funda- 
mental truth  in  the  Christian  message — the 
mysterious  doctrine  of  Atonement.  Sin  is  a 
fact  which  is  indisputable.  It  is  universally 
recognized  and  acknowledged.     It  is  its  own 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY     225 

evidence.  It  is,  moreover,  a  barrier  between 
man  and  his  God.  The  divine  holiness,  and 
sin  with  its  loathsomeness,  its  rebellion,  its 
horrid  degradation,  and  its  hopeless  ruin, 
cannot  coalesce  in  any  system  of  moral  gov- 
ernment. God  cannot  tolerate  sin  or  tem- 
porize with  it,  or  make  a  place  for  it  in  His 
presence.  He  cannot  parley  with  it ;  He 
must  punish  it.  He  cannot  treat  with  it ;  He 
must  try  it  at  the  bar.  He  cannot  overlook 
it ;  He  must  overcome  it.  He  cannot  give  it 
a  moral  status  ;  He  must  visit  it  with  the  con- 
demnation it  deserves.  Atonement  is  God's 
marvellous  method  of  vindicating  once  for  all 
before  the  universe  His  eternal  attitude  toward 
sin,  by  the  voluntary  self-assumption,  in  the 
spirit  of  sacrifice,  of  its  penalty.  This  He 
does  in  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  came 
as  God  incarnate  upon  this  sublime  mission. 
The  facts  of  Christ's  birth,  life,  death,  and 
resurrection,  take  their  place  in  the  realm  of 
veritable  history,  and  the  moral  value  and 
propitiatory  efficacy  of  His  perfect  obedience 
and  sacrificial  death  in  a  representative  ca- 
pacity become  a  mysterious  element  of  limit- 


226     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

less  worth  in  the  process  of  readjusting  the 
relation  of  the  sinner  to  his  God.  Christ  is 
recognized  by  God  as  a  substitute.  The 
merit  of  His  obedience  and  the  exalted  dig- 
nity of  His  sacrifice  are  both  available  to  faith. 
The  sinner,  humble,  penitent,  and  conscious 
of  unworthiness,  accepts  Christ  as  his  Re- 
deemer, his  Mediator,  his  Intercessor,  his 
Saviour,  and  simply  believes  in  Him,  trusting 
in  His  assurances  and  promises,  based  as  they 
are  upon  His  atoning  intervention,  and  re- 
ceives from  God,  as  the  gift  of  sovereign  love, 
all  the  benefits  of  Christ's  mediatorial  work. 

This  is  God's  way  of  reaching  the  goal  of 
pardon  and  reconciliation.  It  is  His  way  of 
being  Himself  just,  and  yet  accomplishing 
the  justification  of  the  sinner.  Here  again  we 
have  the  mystery  of  love  in  its  most  intense 
form,  and  the  mystery  of  wisdom  in  its  most 
august  exemplification.  This  is  the  heart  of 
the  Gospel.  It  throbs  with  mysterious  love  ; 
it  pulsates  with  ineffable  throes  of  divine  feel- 
ing ;  it  bears  a  vital  relation  to  the  whole 
scheme  of  government;  it  is  in  its  hidden 
activities  beyond  the  scrutiny  of  human  reason, 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY      227 

but  it  sends  the  life-blood  coursing  through 
history,  and  it  gives  to  Christianity  its  superb 
vitality  and  its  undying  vigour.  It  is  because 
Christianity  eliminates  sin  from  the  problem 
that  its  solution  is  complete  and  final. 

CHARACTER 
We  pass  now  to  another  word  of  vital  im- 
port— it  is  Character.  God's  own  attitude  to 
the  sinner  being  settled,  and  the  problems  of 
moral  government  solved,  the  next  matter 
which  presents  itself  is  the  personality  of  the 
individual  man.  It  must  be  purified,  trans- 
formed into  the  spiritual  likeness  of  Christ, 
trained  for  immortality.  It  must  be  brought 
into  harmony  with  the  ethical  standards  of 
Christ.  This  Christianity  insists  upon,  and 
for  the  accomplishment  of  this  end  it  is  gifted 
with  an  influence  and  impulse,  a  potency  and 
winsomeness,  an  inspiration  and  helpfulness, 
which  are  full  of  spiritual  mastery  over  the  soul. 
Herein  is  hidden  the  secret  of  the  new  birth 
by  the  Spirit  of  God.  Christianity  thus  re- 
generates, uplifts,  transforms,  and  eventually 
transfigures  the  personal  character.     It  is  an 


228     THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE  OF  MISSIONS 

incomparable  school  of  transcendent  ethics. 
It  honours  the  rugged  training  of  discipline, 
and  uses  it  freely  but  tenderly.  It  accom- 
plishes its  purpose  by  prompting  to  loving 
obedience,  by  teaching  submission,  by  help- 
ing to  self-control,  by  insisting  upon  practical 
righteousness  as  the  law  of  life,  and  by 
introducing  the  Golden  Rule  as  the  code  of 
contact  and  duty  between  man  and  man. 

SERVICE 
In  close  connection  with  character  is  a  word 
of  magnetic  impulse  and  unique  glory  which 
gives  to  Christianity  a  helpful  and  practical 
power  in  history.  It  is  Service.  Here  is  a 
forceful  element  in  the  double  influence  of 
Christianity  over  the  inner  life  and  the  out- 
ward ministry  of  its  followers.  Christ,  its 
Founder,  glorified  service  and  lifted  it  in  His 
own  experience  to  the  dignity  of  sacrifice.  In 
the  light  of  Christ's  example  service  becomes 
an  honour,  a  privilege,  and  a  moral  triumph  ; 
it  is  consummated  and  crowned  in  sacrifice. 
Christianity,  receiving  its  lesson  from  Christ, 
subsidizes  character  in  the  interest  of  service. 


THE   MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY      229 

It  lays  its  noblest  fruitage  of  personal  gifts 
and  spiritual  culture  upon  the  altar  of  philan- 
thropic beneficence.  It  is  unworthy  of  its 
name  if  it  does  not  reproduce  this  spirit  of 
its  Master.  Only  by  giving  itself  to  benevo- 
lent ministry,  as  Christ  gave  Himself  for  the 
world,  can  it  vindicate  its  origin.  Christianity 
recognizes  no  worship  which  is  altogether 
divorced  from  work  for  the  weal  of  others. 
It  endorses  no  religious  professions  which 
are  unmindful  of  the  obligations  of  service 
to  God  and  man  ;  it  allows  itself  to  be  tested 
not  simply  by  the  purity  of  its  motives,  but 
by  the  measure  of  its  sacrifice  for  the  exten- 
sion of  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  and  the  re- 
demption of  man.  The  crown  and  the  goal 
of  its  followers  is,  "Well  done,  good  and 
faithful  servant." 

FELLOWSHIP 
One  other  word  completes  the  code.  It  is 
Fellowship,  of  which  the  Spirit  of  God  is  the 
blessed  medium.  It  is  a  word  which  breathes 
the  sweetest  hope,  implies  the  choicest  priv- 
ilege, and  sounds  the  highest  destiny  of  the 


230    THE  NEW  HOROSCOPE   OF  MISSIONS 

Christian.  It  gives  the  grandest  possible 
meaning  to  eternity,  for  it  suggests  that  it 
is  to  be  passed  with  God.  It  illumines  and 
transfigures  the  present,  for  it  brings  God 
into  it,  and  places  Him  in  living  touch  with 
our  lives,  and  makes  Him  a  helper  in  our 
moral  struggles,  our  spiritual  aspirations,  and 
our  heroic,  though  imperfect,  efforts  to  live 
the  life  of  duty.  It  is  solace  in  trouble,  con- 
solation in  sorrow,  strength  in  weakness, 
courage  in  trial,  help  in  weariness,  and  cheer 
in  loneliness ;  it  becomes  an  unfailing  in- 
spiration when  human  nature  left  to  its  own 
resources  would  lie  down  in  despair  and  die. 
Fellowship  with  God  implies  and  secures  fel- 
lowship with  one  another  in  the  mystical,  spir- 
itual union  of  Christ  with  His  people,  and  His 
people  with  one  another.  An  invisible  society 
of  regenerate  souls,  which  we  call  the  King- 
dom of  God  among  men,  is  the  result.  This 
has  its  visible  product  in  the  organized  society 
of  the  Christian  Church,  which  is  the  chosen 
and  honoured  instrument  of  God  for  the  con- 
servation and  propagation  of  Christianity 
among  men. 


THE  MESSAGE  OF  CHRISTIANITY     23 1 

This,  then,  is  the  message  which  Christian- 
ity signals  to  other  religions  as  it  greets  them 
to-day:  FATHERHOOD,  BROTHERHOOD,  RE- 
DEMPTION, INCARNATION,  ATONEMENT, 
CHARACTER,  SERVICE,  FELLOWSHIP. 

It  remains  to  be  said  that  Christianity 
through  the  individual  seeks  to  reach  society. 
Its  aim  is  first  the  man,  then  men.  It  is 
pledged  to  do  for  the  race  what  it  does  for 
the  individual  man.  Its  plans  are  elastic, 
expansive,  inclusive ;  it  preempts  the  round 
earth  as  its  sphere  of  activity ;  it  ignores  no 
class  or  rank ;  it  forgets  no  tribe  or  nation ; 
it  is  charged  to  minister  in  God's  name  to  the 
world.  It  is  commissioned,  aye,  commanded 
by  its  great  Founder  to  disciple  all  nations. 
In  this  service  it  blesses  and  is  blessed ;  in 
this  ministry  it  uplifts  and  is  itself  uplifted ; 
in  the  accomplishment  of  this  noble  mis- 
sion it  will  finally  be  forever  vindicated  and 
crowned. 


"Fly,  happy  happy  sails  .  .  . 
Fly  happy  with  the  mission  of  the  Cross ; 
Knit  land  to  land,  and  blowing  havenward 
With  silks,  and  fruits,  and  spices,  clear  of  toll, 
Enrich  the  markets  of  the  golden  year." 


INDEX 


Abcarius,  John,  his  witness  to 

Christianity  in  Syria,  141 
Abel,    Rev.    Charles    W.,    his 
missionary   service    in    New 
Guinea,  123 

Abraham,  Deacon,  the  Persian 
philanthropist,  141 

Africa,  missions  in  Uganda,  88- 
91,  149-151;  in  other  sec- 
tions of,  91,  92;  African 
Christian  witnesses,  119, 120; 
missions  in  Nigeria,  152; 
new  possibilities  for  missions 
throughout  the  continent  of, 
172,  173 

Africaner,  Chief,  an  early  Afri- 
can witness,  118 

Ahmed  Shah,  Dr.,  a  prominent 
Indian  Christian  author,  135 

Aintab,  Rev.  Kara  Krikore  of, 
141 

Aitchison,  Sir  Charles  U.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 

Ali,  Moulvie  Safdar,  an  Indian 
Christian  witness  from  the 
ranks  of  Islam,  135;  his 
Urdu  hymns,  136 

Alii,  Rev.  Jani,  a  prominent 
Christian  witness  in  India, 
from  the  ranks  of  Islam,  135 

Altruistic  obligation,  recogni- 
tion of,  in  our  day,  65,  66 

American  Board,  approaching 
centenary  of,  35,  63  ;  its  mis- 
sion in  Shantung,  131 ;  its 
new  college  building  at  Ma- 
dura, 145 

Amoy,  Pastor  Chiu  of,  130;  ac- 


count of  celebration  prepared 
for  the  Rev.  lap  Han-cheong, 

*3h  132 

Amparibe,   mission    station    in 

Madagascar,  121 
Anaman,  Rev.  Jacob  B.,  a  wit- 
ness  to    Christianity   on   the 
Gold  Coast,  Africa,  119 

Anantam,  Rev.  D.,  his  services 
toward  Bible  translation  into 
Telugu,  136 

Ando,  Hon.  Taro,  a  Christian 
government  official  of  Japan, 
128 

Andy,  Dr.  Pulney,  a  distin- 
guished Indian  Christian,  137 

Angell,  President  James  B., 
his  testimony  to  value  of  mis- 
sionary service,  7 1 

Ansgar,  mission  of,  31 ;  mis- 
sionary aims  of,  166 

Apolo  Kagwa,  Sir,  Christian 
statesman  of  Uganda,  119 

Araman,  Michial,  his  witness  to 
Christianity  in  Syria,  141 

Asaad-esh-Shidiak,  his  martyr 
witness  on  Mount  Lebanon, 
118 

Athim,  Abdullah,  a  prominent 
Indian  Christian  author,  135 

Augustine,  mission  of,  30 ;  mis- 
sionary aims  of,  166 

Aurungabad,  revival  in,  86 

Babism,  in  Persia,  94 

Banerjea,  Rev.  Krishna  Mohun, 
a  representative  Indian  Chris- 
tian apologist,  135;  hymn 
writer,  136 


233 


234 


INDEX 


Banurji,  Kali  Charan,  Indian 
Christian  government  official, 

137 

Baptist  Missionary  Society  of 
England,  formation  of  the,  35 

Baptist  Young  People's  Union, 
mission  study  classes  of,  41 

Barotsi,  The,  French  Evangel- 
ical Mission  among,  91 

Barotsiland,  missions  in,  91 

Barrett,  Hon.  John,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Barton,  Rev.  James  L.,  his  ar- 
ticle in  the  North  American 
Review,  October,  1906,  68; 
his  volume  on  "  The  Mission- 
ary and  His  Critics,"  143 

Bauboo,  Mrs.  Tabitha,  a  repre- 
sentative Indian  Christian,  139 

Bentley,  W.  P.,  his  volume  on 
"  Illustrious  Chinese  Chris- 
tians," 132,  133 

Berbary,  Rizzook,  his  witness  to 
Christianity  in  Syria,  141 

Bible  Societies,  missionary 
work  of,  44 

Bible  Translations,  176 

Bishop,  Mrs.  Isabella  Bird,  her 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 

Bistany,  Butrus,  his  witness  to 
Christianity  in  Syria,  141 

Biswas,  Rev.  Jacob,  Bengali 
hymn  writer,  136 

Boniface,  mission  of,  31 ;  mis- 
sionary aims  of,  166 

Boon-Itt,  Rev.  Boon,  record  of, 
133  ;  witnessing  power  of  his 
life,  133 

Bose,  Miss  C.  M.,  a  prominent 
Indian  Christian  education- 
alist, 139 

Bose,  Rev.  M.  N.,  an  Indian 
Christian  hymnist  and  faith- 
ful pastor,  136 


Bose,  Rev.  Ram  Chandra,  a 
noted  Indian  Christian  apolo- 
gist, 135 

Bourdillon,  Sir  James  Austin, 
his  testimony  to  value  of  mis- 
sionary service,  149 

Boxer  Uprising,  1 14,  116 

British  and  Foreign  Bible  So- 
ciety, organization  of  the,  35 

British  Central  Africa  Protec- 
torate, Scotch  Missions  in 
the,  91 

British  Isles,  early  missions  in 
the,  30,  157 

Brotherhood,  growth  of  the 
spirit  of  universal,  21,  22,  65 

Brough,  Rev.  A.  W.,  Kaiser-i- 
Hind  medal  awarded  to,  144 

Bryan,  Hon.  William  J.,  his  tes- 
timony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Bryce,  Hon.  James,  references 
to  race  contact  in  his  Ro- 
manes Lecture  of  1902,  21 ; 
his  testimony  to  value  of  mis- 
sionary service,  7 1 

Buck,  Col.  Alfred  E.,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Bunker,  Rev.  Alonzo,  his  bi- 
ography of  Soo  Thah,  134 

Burma,  witness  of  Soo  Thah, 
133.  *34 

Carey,  William,  early  mis- 
sionary convictions  and  aspi- 
rations of,  31  ;  his  heroic  con- 
secration to  the  missionary 
aim,  31-35;  his  arrival  in 
India,  161 

Carter,  Gov.  George  R.,  his  tes- 
timony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Cecil,  Rev.  Lord  William  Gas- 
coyne,  his  testimony  to  value 
of  missionary  service,  72 


INDEX 


235 


Centenary  Celebrations,  62,  63, 

77 

Chalmers,  Rev.  James,  martyr- 
dom of,  113;  his  missionary 
service  in  New  Guinea,  123 

Chand,  Rev.  Tara,  his  services 
toward  Bible  translation  into 
Urdu,  136 

Chandra,  Prof.  Ram,  an  early 
and  remarkable  Christian 
convert  of  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation   of    the   Gospel, 

l37 

Chang,  Chinese  convert,  129; 
his  services  as  an  evangelist, 
129 

Chatterjee,  Rev.  K.  C,  a 
prominent  Indian  clergyman 
of  Hoshyarpur,  136 

Chatterjee,  The  Misses,  promi- 
nent Indian  Christians,  139 

Chatterji,  Prof.  Golak  Nath,  a 
prominent  Indian  Christian 
educationalist,  137,  138 

Chatterji,  Rev.  T.  K.,an  Indian 
Christian    editor  and  author, 

x35 

Chia,  Pastor,  a  prominent  wit- 
ness for  Christianity  in  Shan- 
tung, 131 

Chiang,  Christian  martyr  in 
China,  115 

China,  the  missionary  outlook 
in,  77-83 ;  missionaries  in, 
77  ;  statistics  of,  77,  78,  83; 
great  changes  in,  during  the 
last  decade,  78-83;  educa- 
tional reforms  in,  79,  80; 
literary  progress  in,  80  ;  edict 
abolishing  footbinding,  81 ; 
efforts  to  suppress  the  opium 
traffic,  81  ;  recognition  of 
medical  missionary  graduates, 
81  ;  agitation  concerning  a 
representative  scheme  of  gov- 
ernment, 81  ;  democracy  in, 


81 ;    intellectual    awakening 
of,  due   largely   to   missions, 
82 ;  changes  in  the  fanatical 
province  of  Hunan,  83 ;  aver- 
age annual  conversions  during 
the  past  fifty  years,  83  ;  noted 
Chinese  Christians,  1 29- 1 33; 
report  of  China   Emergency 
Committee    on  missions    in, 
151  ;    revolutionary   changes 
in,  172. 
Chiu,   Pastor,  his    services  _  at 
Amoy,  130;    the   witnessing 
value  of  his  life,  130 
Christendom,  changed   attitude 
of,   toward   alien   races,    55 ; 
alien  races  potential  members 
of  a  universal,  164 
Christian   Endeavour.     See 
United  Society   of  Christian 
Endeavour 
Christianity,     the      missionary 
ideal  of,  17;  new  world-con- 
sciousness of,  17-47  ;  cosmo- 
politan   outlook    of,   24-30; 
universality    of,    50-53;    its 
progress  in  foreign  fields,  44, 
73-98 ;  is  a  pessimistic  view 
of,  justified  ?  65,  67 ;  a  new 
"cloud   of  witnesses"  to,  in 
mission  fields,  105-154;  the 
missionary  character  of,  157- 
159  ;  reflex  influence  of  mis- 
sions on  Christianity  at  home, 
193-198,    200;  the   message 
of,   to  other  religions,   207- 
231  ;     essential    features    of, 
217-231 
Christie,  Dr.  Dugald,  his   hos- 
pital at  Moukden,  129 
Chucker butty,  Miss  S.,  a  prom- 
inent Indian  Christian,  139 
Church,  The  Christian,  its  new 
missionary  responsibilities  in 
these   times,   96,  97  ;  special 
missionary  duty  of  the  Pres* 


236 


INDEX 


byterian  Church,  98 ;  call  of 
the  Church  to  special  service 
in  each  age  of  history,  159; 
one  of  its  foremost  responsi- 
bilities in  the  present  age, 
159,  160;  will  the  Church  re- 
spond to  the  present  call  of 
missions?  168-170;  enlarged 
opportunity  of,  at  present 
time,  171-173 

Church  Missionary  Society,  or- 
ganization of  the,  35  ;  its  en- 
trance into  Uganda,  88 ;  its 
successful  work  in  South 
Nigeria,  152 

Church  of  England,  missionary 
spirit  of  the,  55 

Churchill,  Rt.  Hon.  Winston, 
his  appreciation  of  the  results 
of  mission  work  in  Uganda, 
149-15 1 

Clarke,  Rev.  William  Newton, 
quoted,  206 

Coillard,  Rev.  Francois,  his 
missionary  labours  among 
the  Barotsi,  91 

Coimbatore,  address  of  Sir  Ar- 
thur Lawley  at,  144 

Colonial  Expansion,  some  bene- 
fits of,  to  backward  races,  19, 
20  ;  the  missionary  motive  in 
the  early  settlement  of  New 
England,  34 

Colquhoun,  Archibald  R.,  fa- 
vourable testimony  of,  to 
missions     in     South     Africa, 

Columba,  mission  of,  30 ;  mis- 
sionary aims  of,  166 

Columbanus,  mission  of,  31  ; 
missionary  aims  of,  31 

Commerce,  missions  as  a  stim- 
ulus to,  192 

Conger,  Hon.  Edwin  H.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  7 1 


Congo  Free  State,  troubles  in 
the,  92 

Contemporary  Review,  The,  for 
February,  1908,  article  in, 
upon  "  Christian  Missions  in 
China,"  151 

Contributions,  facilities  for  mak- 
ing them  available  in  mission 
work,  99 

Converts,  average  number  of 
communicants  admitted  to 
mission  churches  every  Sun- 
day of  the  year,  36 ;  the  wit- 
ness of  faithful  lives  of,  117— 
142 ;  able  to  bear  the  tests 
of  worthy  discipleship,  ill, 
112  ;  value  of,  in  evangelistic 
service,  169,  175 ;  estimated 
number  of,  175  ;  value  of,  to 
the  Christian  Church,  107, 
202 

"  Corporation  for  the  Propaga- 
tion of  the  Gospel  in  New 
England,"  formation  of,  34 

Crowther,  Rt.  Rev.  Samuel 
Adjai,  his  witnessing  life,  118 

Cunningham,  Sir  Frederick,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  149 

Currie,  Sir  Philip,  his  testimony 
to  value  of  missionary  service, 
72 

Curzon,  Lord,  Ex-Viceroy  of 
India,  his  testimony  to  value 
of  missionary  service,  72, 
146,  147 

Cyril,  mission  of,  31  ;  mission- 
ary aims  of,  166 


Danish-Halle  Mission,  or- 
ganization of  the,  34 

Das,  Rai  Bahadur  Maya,  a  dis- 
tinguished   Indian  Christian, 

137 
Dass,    Rev.    G.    L.    Thakur,  a 


INDEX 


237 


noted    Indian   Christian   au- 
thor, 135  , 
David,    Rev.    Joseph,   a   noted 
Indian  Christian  author,  135 
Day,  Rev.  Lai  Bihari,  a  repre- 
sentative    Indian     Christian 
apologist,    135;   a  writer    of 
hymns,  136 
Denby,  Hon.  Charles,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 
Devadasan,  Rev.  J.  N.,  a  prom- 
inent native  pastor  of  Madras, 
136 
Devasagayam,   Rev.   John,  the 
first  ordained   native   clergy- 
man of  the  Church  Missionary 
Society  in  South  India,  136 
Diplomacy,  relations  of  missions 

to,  186-192 
Domestic     Life,   improvements 
effected    by    missions    upon, 
179,  180 
Drummond,    Henry,   reference 
to    his   work    among   young 
men,  133 
Duff,  Dr.  Alexander,  Students' 
Missionary  Society  at  St.  An- 
drews     University     founded 

by,  163 
Durand,  Sir   Henry  Mortimer, 
his     testimony    to    value    of 
missionary  work,  72,  153 

East  Indies  (Dutch),  mission 
of  Heurnius  to  the,  31 ;  mis- 
sion success  among  Moslems 
in  the,  92 

Ebara,  Hon.  Soroku,  a  promi- 
nent Christian  in  Japan,  128 

Ebina,  Rev.  D.,  a  Congrega- 
tionalist  pastor  of  Japan,  1 28 

Economic  Value  of  Missions, 
177-179 

Edinburgh  Missionary  Society, 
organization  of  the,  35 


Educational  Benefits  of  Mis- 
sions,  175 

Egede,  Hans,  missionary  serv- 
ices of,  31 

Egypt,  missionary  conference 
held  in  1906  in,  94 

Elliot,  Sir  Charles,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72 

Ellis,  William  T.,  his  report  of 
his   visit   of  investigation   to 
missions    around   the   world, 
68, 69 ;  quoted,  with  reference 
to    missions    in    Korea,   74, 
128;  testimony   to   value   of 
missionary  work,  153 
Epeteneto,  a  distinguished  wit- 
ness to  the  Gospel  in  the  New 
Hebrides,  118 
Epworth   League,  The,  in  for- 
eign mission  lands,  41 
Erromanga,   martyred   mission- 
aries of,  112 

Federation,    cooperation     on 
mission   fields   a   stimulus  to 
the     federation     movement, 
48;    its    growth   in   mission 
fields,  193-197  5  its  progress 
in  Christendom,  197,  198 
Fiji      Islands,     churches     and 
religious     services     in    the, 
126;  holds   the  world's   rec- 
ord  for   large   percentage  of 
church  attendance,  127 
Footbinding,   edict    abolishing, 
in  China,  81  ;  victorious  cam- 
paign of  missions  against,  180 
Fosbery,  W.  F.  W.,  his  tribute 
to  work  of  Church  Missionary 
Society  in  Southern  Nigeria, 
152 
Foster,  Hon.  John  W.,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 
Fox,   Francis  William,  his  Re- 


238 


INDEX 


port  upon  Christian  missions 
in  China,  151,  152 

Francis,  St.,  of  Assisi,  mission- 
ary services  of,  31 

Fraser,  Sir  Andrew  H.  L.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mis- 
sionary work,  72,  144 

French  Evangelical  Mission, 
among  the  Barotsi,  91 

Frere,  Sir  Bartle,  his  testimony 
to  value  of  missionary  service, 
72 

Glasgow  Missionary  So- 
ciety, organization  of  the,  35 

Golaknath,  Rev.  Mr.,  an  early 
example  of  an  Indian  Chris- 
tian clergyman,  in  connection 
with  the  Church  Missionary 
Society,  136 

Gordon,  Rev.  George  N.,  mar- 
tyrdom of,  112 

Gordon,  Rev.  James  D.,  mar- 
tyrdom of,  112 

Goreh,  Rev.  Nehemiah,  a 
prominent  Indian  Christian 
apologist,  135 ;  a  writer  of 
hymns,  136 

Griscom,  Hon.  Lloyd  C,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  71 

Gucheng,  native  pastor  in  Lifu, 
124;  his  work  in  New 
Guinea,  124 

Gwatkin,  Prof.  Henry  Melvill, 
quoted,  47 

Han-cheong,  Rev.  Iap,  cele- 
bration of  the  fortieth  anni- 
versary of  his  pastorate,  131, 
132 

Hannington,  Rt.  Rev.  James, 
the  martyrdom  of,  1 12 

Hara,  T.,  friend  of  discharged 
prisoners  in  Japan,  127 


Harada,  Rev.  Tasuku,  a  Con- 
gregationalist  clergyman  in 
Japan,  128 

Haraiwa,  Rev.  Yoshiyasu,  a 
Methodist  pastor  of  Japan,  128 

Hart,  Sir  Robert,  his  testimony 
to  value  of  missionary  service, 
72 

Harvard  University,  foreign 
mission  work  of,  42 

Hatch,  Dr.  Edwin,  his  poem, 
"  All  Saints,"  142 

Hawthorne,  Julian,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Hay,  Hon.  John,  spirit  of  his  in- 
ternational diplomacy,  189 

Haystack  Celebration,  63 

Hepburn,  Dr.  J.  C,  entrance 
of,  into  Japan,  162 

Heroes  of  the  Faith,  examples 
of,  among  native  converts, 
107-142 ;  value  of  martyr 
testimony  as  an  asset  of 
modern  Christianity,  117 

Heurnius,  Justus,  his  mission  to 
the  Dutch  East  Indies,  31 

Hirata,  Rev.  Yoshimichi,  a  wit- 
ness for  Christ  in  Japan,  1 28 

Holcombe,  Hon.  Chester,  his 
article  on  Missions  in  China, 
in  the  Atlantic  Monthly,  for 
September,  1906,  67 

Home  Missions,  should  never 
be  neglected,  17,  43  ;  mutual 
helpfulness  of  Home  and  For- 
eign Missions,  50,  51,  54,  56, 
96,  97.  167-170,  173.  *93» 
194,  197-202 

Homma,  Mr.  S.,  a  Japanese 
Christian  social  reformer,  128 

Honda,  Rev.  Yoichi,  educa- 
tional work  of,  in  Japan,  127  ; 
chosen  as  first  native  Bishop 
of  the  Methodist  Church  in 
Japan,  128 


INDEX 


239 


Hsi,  Pastor,  biography  of,  132 
Hsieh,    a     Chinese     Christian 

martyr,  1 16 
Hunan,  remarkable  changes  in 

attitude  of,  toward  missions, 

83 

Hunter,  Sir  William,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72 


Ibrahim,  Mirza,  martyrdom 
of,  141 

Ibuka,  Rev.  K.,  a  well-known 
Christian  teacher  in  Japan, 
128 

Imad-ud-Din,  Rev.  Dr.,  Biblical 
scholarship  of,  135 

Imperial  Responsibilities,  inter- 
preted in  their  higher  sig- 
nificance by  missions,  29,  30 ; 
new  recognition  of,  among  the 
nations,  55 

India,  early  missionaries  to,  31 ; 
Christian  missions  in,  83-88  ; 
social  changes  in,  84;  mass 
movements  to  Christianity, 
84,  85  ;  revival  incidents  in, 
85-87  ;  formation  of  the  Na- 
tional Missionary  Society,  87 ; 
Christian  witnesses  in,  135— 
140 ;  the  awakened  and  re- 
ceptive condition  of,  172 

Indirect  Results  of  Missions, 
179-203 

Industrial  Missions,  personal 
virtues  encouraged  and  pro- 
moted by,  177, 178 ;  economic 
value  of,  178 

International  Affairs,  influence 
of  missions  upon,  185-192 

Interdenominationalism,  the  in- 
fluence of  missions  in  pro- 
moting an  interdenomina- 
tional consciousness,  48  ;  the 
tendency  to  ecclesiastical  de- 


limitations passing  away,  193- 
198 

Ishii,  Juji,  philanthropic  work 
of,  127 

Ishimoto,  Prof.  Sanjuro,  a  rep- 
resentative Japanese  Chris- 
tian, 128 

Islam,  revolt  from,  in  Persia, 
94 ;  movements  of  the  Si- 
nousis,  190 ;  the  menace  of 
Pan-Islamism,  189,  190 

Isotry,  tomb  of  Prime  Minister 
of  Madagascar  at,  121 

JAGANADHAN,      REV.      P.,     his' 
services  toward  Bible  transla- 
tion into  Telugu,  136 

Japan,  progress  of  Christianity 
in,  73,  74 ;  education  in,  74 ; 
forecast  of  its  national  great- 
ness, 74 ;  distinguished  Chris- 
tians in,  127,  128;  progress 
of  religious  liberty  in,  during 
the  past  half  century,  172; 
Japanese  young  men  sent  to 
Western  lands  to  be  educated, 
182 

Johnston,  Sir  Harry  H.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 

Joshi,  Rev.  D.  L.,  a  prominent 
Indian  Christian,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  Church  Mis- 
sionary Society,  136 

Kapiolani,  Queen,  a  cour- 
ageous witness  to  the  truth  in 
Hawaii,  118 

Karens,  The,  influence  of  Soo 
Thah  in  promoting  national 
unity  among,  135 

Karmarkar,  Rev.  S.  V.,  hymn 
writer  in  Marathi,  136 

Kasagama,  Daudi,  his  Christian 
rule  as  King  of  Toro,H9 


240 


INDEX 


Kataoka,  Hon.  Kenkichi,  Chris- 
tian statesman  of  Japan,  127 

Kettering,  formation  of  the  Bap- 
tist Missionary  Society  at,  35 

Khama,  King,  his  beneficent 
rule,  119 

Khasia  Hills,  revival  among 
the  natives  of  the,  86 

Khisti,  Rev.  Hari  Ramchandra, 
a  faithful  Indian  pastor  in 
connection  with  the  mission 
of  the  American  Board,  136 

King,  Hon.  Hamilton,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Kingdom,  fresh  annals  of  the, 
157-204;  relation  of  the 
Church  to  the  Kingdom,  156 

Korea,  progress  of  Christianity 
in,  74-77  ;  remarkable  re- 
cent developments  in,  75,  76, 
128;  Bible  translation  in,  76, 
77;  revival  scenes  in,  128; 
the  wonderful  arousing  of, 
172 

Koshi  Koshi,  Archdeacon,  his 
services  toward  Bible  transla- 
tion into  Malayalam,  136 

Kothahbyu,  his  faithful  Chris- 
tian witness  in  Burma,  1 18 

Kozaki,  Rev.  H.,  a  Congrega- 
tionalist  pastor  in  Japan,  128 

Krikore,  Rev.  Kara,  fiftieth  an- 
niversary of  his  pastorate  at 
Aintab,  Turkey,  141 

Krishna  Pal,  an  early  witness  to 
the  truth  in  India,  118 

Krupabai,  See  Satthianadhan, 
Krupabai 

Kucheng,  Christian  martyrs  of, 
"3 

Lawes,  Rev.  W.  G.,  his  mis- 
sionary service  in  New 
Guinea,  123 

Lawley,   Sir   Arthur,  his   testi- 


mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72,  144,  145 

Laymen's  Missionary  Move- 
ment, its  interdenominational 
support  of  foreign  missions, 
42 ;  its  establishment  in  Great 
Britain,  164 

Lely,  Sir  Frederic  S.  P.,  his  fa- 
vourable testimony  to  the  work 
of  missionaries  in  India,  146, 

147 
Lewanika,    King,    his    decree 

abolishing  slavery,  91 
Lewis,  Sir  Samuel,  a  prominent 

African  Christian,  119 
Lienchow,  Christian  martyrs  of, 

113       •  , 

Lifu,     missionary     service     of 

native  converts  of,  124;  pio- 
neer service  in,  125 

Liggins,  Rev.  John,  entrance 
of,  into  Japan,  162 

Literature,  Christian,  introduc- 
tion of,  upon  mission  fields, 
176;  increase  of  missionary 
literature  at  home,  162,  174 

London  Missionary  Society,  or- 
ganization of  the,  35  ;  its  suc- 
cessful work  at  Nagercoil,  63, 
64 

Loyalty  Islands,  native  preach- 
ers and  teachers  from  the, 
123 

Lugard,  Sir  Frederick,  his  tes- 
timony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72 

Lull,  Raymond,  missionary  serv- 
ices of,  31 

Luther  League,  The,  in  foreign 
mission  lands,  41 

Macalister,.  Prof.  Alexan- 
der, his  Report  upon  Chris- 
tian missions  in  China,  151, 

l52 

MacArthur,       Lieutenant-Gen- 


INDEX 


24I 


eral  Arthur,  his  appreciation 
of  missions  in  Korea,  143 
McCormick,  Frederick,  his  ap- 
preciation of  foreign  missions, 

*53 

Macfarlane,  Rev.  Samuel,  his 
missionary  service  in  New 
Guinea,  123 

McGregor,  Sir  William,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 

Mackenzie,  Sir  Alexander,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mis- 
sionary service,  72 

McKenzie,  F.  A.,  his  apprecia- 
tion of  foreign  missions,  68, 

153 

Madagascar,  victories  of  the 
Gospel  in,  92,  93  ;  the  Chris- 
tian record  of  Rainitrimo, 
120-122;  Rasalama,  Chris- 
tian martyr  of,  122;  "  killing 
times  "  in,  122 

Madras  Presidency,  religious 
awakening  at  various  places 
in  the,  86 

Madura,  American  Board  Mis- 
sion at,  145 

Mahan,  Admiral  A.  T.,  favour- 
able testimony  of,  to  mission- 
ary efforts  in  the  Far  East, 

152,  153 

Makino,  Rev.  To  raj  1,  a  witness 
for  Christ  in  Japan,  128 

"  Mankind  and  the  Church," 
reference  to  volume  thus  en- 
titled, 47 

Marau,  Rev.  Clement,  his  early 
witness  to  Christianity  in 
Melanesia,  118 

Marshall,  Rev.  Thomas  J.,  a 
distinguished  African  Chris- 
tian witness,  119 

Martyrs,  the  "  noble  army  "  of, 
in  modern  times,  112;  mis- 
sionaries who  have  been,  112, 


113;  native  converts  who 
have  stood  this  test,  113,  114; 
the  martyr  roll  of  China,  113- 
117;  estimate  of  their  num- 
ber, 113 

Masih,  Rev.  Abdul,  a  promi- 
nent Christian  witness  from 
the  ranks  of  Islam,  135 

Masih,  Rev.  Imam,  his  services 
toward  Bible  translation  into 
Bengali,  136 

Matsuyama,  Rev.  F.,  a  witness 
for  Christ  in  Japan,  128 

Mawhinney,  R.  B.,  heroic  serv- 
ice of,  in  famine  relief  in 
India,  146 

Medical  Missions,  philanthropic 
results  of,  97,  177 

Mengo,  cathedral  at,  90 

Men's  Foreign  Missionary  Con- 
ventions, at  Omaha,  42 ;  at 
Philadelphia,  43 ;  convention 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  at  Richmond,  43 

Meshakah,  Michial,  his  witness 
to  Christianity  in  Syria,  141 

Methodius,  mission  of,  31 ;  mis- 
sionary aims  of,  166 

Mission  Study  Classes,  42,  43 

Missions,  the  new  horoscope  of, 
10,  II;  true  aim  of,  23,  24 ; 
worthy  of  closer  attention  of 
scholars,  38,  60,  61  ;  loyalty 
of  friends  of,  in  the  past,  39  ; 
the  rising  tide  of  interest 
throughout  the  Church  at  the 
present  time,  40-44,  162; 
their  remarkable  progress, 
44;  changes  in  the  mission- 
ary appeal,  45-47  ;  strategic 
aspects  of  the  missionary  out- 
look, 59-101 ;  difficulties  and 
hindrances  of,  61,  62;  apolo- 
getic value  of,  66,  67  ;  favour- 
able testimonies  to,  71,  72, 
143-153 ;    optimistic   aspects 


242 


INDEX 


of,  at  the  present  time,  73- 
96 ;  their  historical  progress, 
157—159  ;  leading  aspects  of, 
at  the  present  time,  161;  in- 
creasing literature  of,  162 ; 
facilities  for  study  of,  162, 
163  ;  the  individualistic  view 
of,  165  ;  nationalistic  view  of, 
166,  167  ;  cosmopolitan  view 
of,  168-17 1  ;  modern  achieve- 
ments of,  173-179;  social  re- 
sults of,  90,  133,  134,  179- 
181  ;  racial  influence  of,  181- 
185 ;  international  scope  of, 
185-192 ;  more  general  re- 
sults of,  192;  reflex  influence 
of,  193  ;  stimulus  of,  to  feder- 
ation and  unity,  193- 1 98; 
contribution  of,  to  the  sum 
total  of  Christian  forces  in  the 
world,  198-202 ;  are  we  un- 
duly idealizing  them  ?  202  ; 
duty  of  the  pastorate  to  pro- 
mote, 203 

Missionary  Review  of  the 
World,  The,  cited,  147 

Miyagawa,  Rev.  Tsuetaru,  a 
Congregationalist  pastor  of 
Japan,  128 

Miyake,  Rev.  A.,  a  Christian 
Endeavour  leader  of  Japan, 
128 

Miyama,  Rev.  K.,  a  witness  for 
Christ  in  Japan,  128 

Mombasa,  as  a  railway  termi- 
nus, 88 

Money,  its  investment  in  mis- 
sions brings  large  returns,  99 

Moravian  Church,  early  mis- 
sionary work  of  the,  31,  34 

Morrison,  Rev.  Robert,  centen- 
nial commemoration  of  his 
arrival  in  China,  63,  77  ;  his 
entrance  into  China,  162 

Moslems,  missions  among  the, 
in  the  Dutch  East  Indies,  92 


Motoda,  Rev.  S.,  his  loyalty  to 
Christianity  in  Japan,  127 

Moukden,  medical  work  at,  129 

Mountmorres,  Lord  William, 
his  testimony  to  value  of  mis- 
sionary service,  72 

Mukerji,  Rev.  Prof.  H.  L.,  a 
prominent  Indian  Christian 
educationalist,  137 

Mulligan,  William,  heroic  serv- 
ice of,  in  famine  relief  in 
India,  146 

Nagercoil,  centennial  of  Lon- 
don Missionary  Society  at,  63 

Naoroji,  Rev.  Dhanjibhai,  the 
celebration  of  jubilee  of  his 
Christian  ministry,  136,  137 

Napier,  Lord  Francis,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72 

Nashville,  Student  Volunteer 
Convention  at,  153 

National  Life,  influence  of  mis- 
sions upon,  181-185 

National  Missionary  Society  of 
India,  formation  of,  87 

Navalkar,  Rev.  R.,  a  prominent 
Indian  Christian  author,  135  ; 
hymns  written  by  the,  136 ; 
his  services  toward  Bible 
translation  into  Marathi,  136 

Neesima,  Rev.  Joseph  Hardy, 
his  noble  witness  to  Chris- 
tianity in  Japan,  118,  127 

Nestorian  Church  in  Persia,  94 

New  Guinea,  prominent  mis- 
sionaries in,  123 ;  faithful 
missionary  service  of  South 
Sea  native  Christians  in,  123- 
125  ;  the  roll  of  martyrdom 
in,  123,  124 

Nicholson,  Sir  Frederick  Au- 
gustus, favourable  testimony 
of,  to  missionary  service,  72, 
147 


INDEX 


243 


Nigeria,  Church  Missionary  So- 
ciety missions  in,  152 

Nitobe,  Prof.  Inazo,  a  well- 
known  Japanese  Christian, 
128 

Niwa,  Mr.  S.,  a  Japanese  Y.  M. 
C.  A.  Secretary,  128 

Northcote,  Lord  Henry  Staf- 
ford, his  testimony  to  value  of 
missionary  service,  72 

Northfield,  address  of  Sir  Fred- 
erick Nicholson  at,  147 

Norton,  Thomas  H.,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Nyassa,  Lake,  Scotch  missions 
around,  91 

Okuno,  Rev.  M.,  a  prominent 
Christian  pastor  in  Japan,  128 

Omaha,  convention  of  Presby- 
terian laymen  at,  42 

O'Neill,  T.,  martyrdom  of,  1 13 

Opium,  efforts  in  China  to  sup- 
press traffic  in,  81 

Oriental,  religious  capabilities 
of  the  average,  202 

Outlook,  The  Missionary,  op- 
timistic features  of,  73-96; 
its  cosmopolitanism,  161-171 

Padmanji,  Rev.  Baba,  a  noted 
Indian  Christian  author,  135  ; 
his  services  toward  Bible 
translation  into  Marathi,  136 

Pan-Islamism,  the  menace  of, 
189,  190 

Pao,  the  "Apostle  of  Lifu," 
125  ;  monument  erected  to 
memory  of,  126 

Pariahs,  The,  effects  of  Chris- 
tian missions  among,  63,  139, 
140 

Parsis,  The,  jubilee  of  a  promi- 
nent convert  among,  137 


Pastors,  missionary  information 
a  source  of  inspiration  to,  56 

Patteson,  Rt.  Rev.  John  Cole- 
ridge, martyrdom  of,  112 

Paul,  native  evangelist  in  the 
Congo,  120 

Paul,  Rev.  Samuel,  a  noted  In- 
dian Christian  author,  135 

Paulinus,  mission  of,  30 

Peking,  Medical  Missionary 
College  at,  81 

Persecution,  the  sufferings  of 
victims  in  the  Boxer  uprising, 
114-117 

Persia,  missions  in,  94  ;  political 
changes  in,  94  ;  Deacon  Abra- 
ham and  Mirza  Ibrahim  as 
Christian  witnesses  in,  141 

Pestonji,  Rev.  Hormazdji,  an 
Indian  pastor,  in  connection 
with  the  Baptist  Missionary 
Society,  136 

Philadelphia,  convention  of 
Presbyterian  men  at,  43 

Philanthropy  of  Missions,  177 

Phillips,  Rt.  Rev.  Charles,  a 
distinguished  African  Chris- 
tian, 119 

Plutschau,  Henry,  entrance  into 
India  of,  31 ;  bi-centenary 
celebration  of  his  landing  in 
India,  62 

Pomare,  King,  his  early  witness 
to  the  Gospel  in  Tahiti,  118 

Port  Moresby,  mission  cemetery 
at,  124 

"  Prayer  Storms,"  as  a  feature 
of  religious  excitement  in 
India,  86 

Presbyterian  Board,  its  mission 
in  Korea,  75,  76 

Presbyterian  Church  in  the 
United  States  of  America, 
great  numbers  of  people 
within  its  foreign  mission  ter- 
ritory, 98 


244 


INDEX 


Press,  changed  tone  of  secular 
journals  in  their  references  to 
missions,  67-70;  more  fre- 
quent references  to  missions 
in  the  public,  162,  163 

Princeton  University,  foreign 
mission  work  of,  42 

Pyeng  Yang,  churches  in,  75 

Race  Problems,  missions  a 
helpful  solvent  of,  190-192 

Races,  Non-Christian,  changed 
estimate  of  the  value  of  their 
cooperation  in  promoting  the 
progress  of  the  Church,  45- 
47  ;  the  contribution  they 
may  make  to  the  sum  total  of 
Christian  influence  in  the 
world,  108,  202 

Radstock,  Lord  Granville,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 

Rahman,  Abdul,  an  Indian 
Christian  witness  from  the 
ranks  of  Islam,  135 

Rainitrimo,  Christian  convert  in 
Madagascar,  120-122 

Rallia  Ram,  M.  L.,  a  noted  In- 
dian Christian  author,  135 

Ramabai,  Pundita,  revival  ex- 
periences in  her  homes  for 
widows  and  orphans,  86 ; 
prominent  as  a  philanthropist, 

139 

Ramsay,  Prof.  William  M.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 

Ranavalona  I,  Queen,  persecu- 
tion of  Christians  during  the 
reign  of,  in  Madagascar,  121 

Rasalama,  the  first  Christian 
martyr  in  Madagascar,  122 

Ratnagiri,  revival  in,  86 

Richmond,  Protestant  Episcopal 
Convention  at,  43 

Roman  Empire,  Holy,  political 


and    ecclesiastical    ideals    of 

the,  19 
Ross,  Rev.  John,  Korean  New 

Testament  prepared  by,  76 ; 

his   biography  of  Wang,  the 

Manchurian  evangelist,  129 
Ruatoka,   native    evangelist  in 

New  Guinea,  from  the  South 

Sea  Islands,  125 


Sahu,  Rev.  Shem,  his  serv- 
ices toward  Bible  translation 
into  Uriya,  136 

Sainthood,  the  roll-call  of 
modern  saints,  141  ;  Dr. 
Hatch's  poem  on,  142 

Samoan  Islands,  native  preach- 
ers and  teachers  from  the,  123 

Sangle,  K.  R.,  Marathi  hymn 
writer,  136 

Sarkis,  Ibrahim,  his  witness  to 
Christianity  in  Syria,  141 

Sastri,  Vedanayaga,  Tamil 
hymn  writer,  136 

Sato,  Dr.  S.,  a  Christian  educa- 
tionalist of  Japan,  128 

Satow,  Sir  Ernest,  his  testimony 
to  value  of  missionary  serv- 
ice, 72 

Satthianadhan,  Krupabai,  an 
Indian  Christian  authoress  of 
distinction,  139 

Satthianadhan,  Mrs.  Samuel,  a 
prominent  Indian  Christian, 
editor  of  The  Indian  Ladies* 
Magazine,  139 

Satthianadhan,  Prof.  Samuel, 
Christian  personality  of,  138, 
139 ;  his  lecture  course  in 
America,  138;  an  Indian 
witness  to  Christianity  of  ex- 
ceptional value,  138 

Satthianadhan,  Rev.  W.  T.,  a 
prominent  Tamil  clergyman, 
in  connection  with  the  Church 


INDEX 


245 


Missionary  Society,  until  his 
death,  in  1892,  136 
Sawayama,    Rev.    Paul,   a   dis- 
tinguished preacher  of  Japan, 

I27 

Schwartz,  Christian    Friedrich, 

entrance  into  India  of,  31 

Science,  contribution  of  mis- 
sionaries to,  192,  193 

Scott-Moncrieff,  Col.  G.  K.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 

Sectarianism,  out  of  place  in 
mission  fields,  193-198  ;  wan- 
ing power  of,  in  home 
Churches,  197,  198 

Seoul,   Severance   Hospital  at, 

143 
Severance  Hospital,  commenda- 
tion of  work  at  the,  by  Lieu- 
tenant-General      MacArthur, 

143 

Severinus,  mission  of,  31 

Seward,  Hon.  George  F.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  71 

Shanghai,  Centenary  Confer- 
ence at,  49,  63,  77  ;  resolu- 
tions of  Conference  quoted, 
104  ;  quotation  from  Records 
of  Conference,  156 

Sheshadri,  Rev.  Narayan,  a 
noted  Indian  Christian  pas- 
tor, 136 

Shimada,  Hon.  Saburo,  a 
Japanese  Christian  journalist, 
128 

Shimomura,  Prof.  K.,  a  Japanese 
Christian  educationalist,  128 

Shome,  Mrs.  Nirmalabala,  a 
distinguished  Indian  Chris- 
tian, 139 

Siam,  record  of  the  Rev.  Boon 
Boon-Itt,  133  ;  Crown  Prince 
of,  quoted  with  reference  to 
Christian  missionaries,  144 


Sibree,  Rev.  James,  quoted, 
I20,  121,  122 

Simpson,  Sir  Alexander  Rus- 
sell, his  Report  upon  Christian 
missions  in  China,  151,  152 

Singh,  Lady  Harnum,  a  promi- 
nent Indian  Christian,  139 

Singh,  Miss  Lilivati,  a  repre- 
sentative    Indian    Christian, 

139 

Singh,  Sir  Harnum,  Indian 
Christian  statesman,  137  ; 
delegate  to  the  coronation  of 
Edward  VII,  137 

Sinousis,  The,  secret  movements 
of,  190 

Slavery,  abolition  of,  in  Uganda, 
as  a  result  of  missions,  90;  in 
Barotsiland,  91,  92 

Slavs,  The,  early  missions 
among,  31 

Smith,  Lieutenant  Shergold, 
martyrdom  of,  112 

Social  Reforms,  promotion  of,  by 
missions,  179-18 1 

Society  for  Promoting  Christian 
Knowledge,  formation  of,  34 

Society  for  the  Propagation  of 
the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts, 
formation  of,  34 

Soo  Thah,  his  witness  to  Chris- 
tianity in  Burma,  133— 135 

Sorabji,  Mrs.,  and  her  daugh- 
ters, representative  Indian 
Christian  women,  139 

South  Sea  Islands,  results  of 
Christian  missions  in  the,  92, 
126,  127 

Stanley,  Sir  Henry  M.,  his  tes- 
timony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72 

Stevenson,  Prof.  Richard  T. 
quoted,  16 

Stevenson,  Robert  Louis,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  72 


246 


INDEX 


Student  Volunteer  Movement, 
missionary  efforts  of,  41,  201, 
202 

Subrahmanyam,  Dewan  Ba- 
hadur N.,  a  distinguished  In- 
dian Christian,  137 

Summer  Schools  and  Confer- 
ences, 43 

Sunday-school  Convention  at 
Rome,  41  ;  interest  in  mis- 
sions at,  41 

Superstition,  missionary  influ- 
ence in  banishing,  180,  181 

Syen  Cheun,  Christians  in,  75 

Syria,Christian  witnesses  in,  141 


Taft,  Hon.  W.  H.,  testimony 
to  value  of  missions,  71 

Tamura,  Rev.  N.,  a  Presby- 
terian clergyman  in  Japan, 
128 

Taylor,  Mrs.  Howard,  her 
biography  of  Pastor  Hsi,  132 

Temple,  Sir  Richard,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72 

Tennyson,  Lord  Alfred,  quoted, 
200,  232 

Testimonies  favourable  to  mis- 
sions from  men  in  high  sta- 
tions throughout  the  world, 
71,  72,  108,  I43~IS4 

Tests  of  Christian  character, 
the  evidential  value  of,  109, 
1 10  ;  applied  to  the  member- 
ship of  native  churches,  no, 
in;  native  converts  able  to 
bear  the  tests  of  worthy  dis- 
cipleship,    in,  112 

Thompson,  Rev.  C.  S.,  heroic 
service  of,  in  famine  relief  in 
India,  146 

Tilak,  Rev.  N.  V.,  a  prominent 
Indian  Christian  author,  135  ; 
hymns  by,  136 


Tiyo  Soga,  a  native  African 
witness,  118 

Tokyo,  Conference  of  World's 
Student  Christian  Federation 
at,  41,  78 

Tomeoka,  Rev.  Kosuke,  a 
Japanese  Christian  social  re- 
former, 128 

Toro,  the  Christian  king  of,  119 

Tours,  Battle  of,  189 

Tract  Societies,  work  of,  44 

Tucker,  Rt.  Rev.  Alfred  Robert, 
quoted  with  reference  to  for- 
mer cruel  customs  in  Uganda, 

89 
Turkish    Empire,   missions 
among  the  Oriental  Christian 
sects  in  the,  93 ;  faithful  Chris- 
tian witnesses  in  the,  141 


Uchimura,  Rev.  Kanzo,  a 
well-known  Japanese  Chris- 
tian, 128 

Uemura,  Rev.  M.,  a  Presby- 
terian clergyman  of  Japan, 
128 

Uganda,  results  of  Christian 
missions  in,  88-91  ;  now  a 
British  protectorate,  88;  im- 
proved means  of  transit  to, 
88,  89  ;  atrocious  cruelties  in, 
before  the  entrance  of  mis- 
sions into,  88 ;  signs  of 
rapid  Christianization  in,  88, 
90 ;  native  support  of  mis- 
sions in,  90 ;  the  Mengo  Ca- 
thedral, 90 ;  remarkable  so- 
cial transformations  in,  90, 
91 ;  the  king  and  many  of- 
ficials of,  are  Christians,  90, 
91  ;  testimony  of  Rt.  Hon. 
Winston  Churchill  with  refer- 
ence to  remarkable  results  of 
missions  in,  149-15 1 ;  favour- 
able comments  upon  mission- 


INDEX 


247 


ary  work  in,  by  Mr.  George 
Wilson,  151 

Ulfilas,  mission  of,  31 

United  Society  of  Christian  En- 
deavour, foreign  missionary 
service  of,  41,  201,  202 

Unity,  movements  in  mission 
fields  in  the  interests  of,  48, 
49  ;  increasing  interest  in,  at 
home  and  abroad,  193-198 

Universality  of  the  Gospel,  its 
world-wide  purpose  as  taught 
by  Christ,  25-30,  50 ;  as 
taught  by  Paul,  50 ;  Chris- 
tians and  the  universal  king- 
dom, 52;  cosmopolitan  pro- 
gramme of  modern  missions, 
161-171 

Vajiravudh,  Prince  Chowfa 
Maha,  Crown  Prince  of 
Siam,  his  appreciation  of 
Christian  missionaries,  144 

Victoria  Nyanza,  railway  to  the, 
88 

Wadhams,  Com.  A.  V.,  his 
testimony  to  value  of  mission- 
ary service,  71 

Wanamaker,  Hon.  John,  his  tes- 
timony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Wang,  Manchurian  evangelist, 
129,  130 

Watanabe,  Judge  N.,  a  promi- 
nent Christian  leader  of 
Japan,  128 

Watkinson,  Rev.  W.  L.,  quoted, 

58 

Waziris,  The,  ministry  of  the 
Rev.  John  Williams  (an  In- 
dian Church  Missionary  So- 
ciety clergyman),  among,  136 

Welinkar,  Prof.  N.  G.,  a  dis- 
tinguished Indian  Christian, 
137 


Wesleyan  Missionary  Society, 
organization  of  the,  35 

Westcott,  Rt.  Rev.  Brooke 
Foss,  remark  of,  with  refer- 
ence to  the  conversion  of 
India,  199 

Williams,  Rt.  Rev.  C.  M.,  en- 
trance of,  into  Japan,  162 

Williams,  Rev.  John,  martyr- 
dom of,  112 

Williams,  Rev.  John,  Indian 
Christian,  his  ministry  among 
the  Waziris,  136 

Willibrord,  mission  of,  31 

Wilson,  George,  his  favourable 
testimony  to  missionary  work 
in  Uganda,  151 

Wilson,  Philip  Whitwell,  quo- 
tation from  his  article  on  the 
value  of  missions,  in  the 
Chronicle  of  the  London  Mis- 
sionary Society  for  March, 
1908,  147,  148 

Wingate,  Sir  Andrew,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  148,  149 

Witnesses,  the  testimony  of 
many,  to  the  value  of  mis- 
sions, 71,  72,  108,  143-153; 
a  new  "  cloud  "  of,  105-154; 
meaning  of  the  word,  as  used 
in  Hebrews  12  :  I,  105-107  ; 
our  mission  converts  worthy 
witnesses,  107,  110-112; 
martyr  witnesses  in  China 
and  elsewhere,  1 12-125; 
martyr  witnesses  among  mis- 
sionaries, 112,  113;  the  wit- 
ness testimony  of  faithful 
lives  of  native  converts,  117- 
142  ;  in  New  Guinea,  123  ; 
in  Lifu,  125 ;  in  the  South 
Sea  Islands,  126;  in  Japan, 
127,  128;  in  Korea,  128, 
129;  in  China,  129-133;  in 
Siam,  133;  in   Burma,  133- 


248 


INDEX 


135;  in  India,  1 35-140 ;  in 
Syria,  141 ;  in  Persia,  141  ; 
in  Turkey,  141 

Woodburn,  Sir  John,  his  testi- 
mony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  72 

World-consciousness,  deepen- 
ing of,  in  the  Church,  17-56 

World's  Student  Christian  Fed- 
eration, Conference  of,  at 
Tokyo,  41,  78 

Wright,  Hon.  Luke  E.,  his  tes- 
timony to  value  of  missionary 
service,  71 

Yale     University,     foreign 

mission  work  of,  42 
Yamamoto,  Mr.  T.,  a  Japanese 

Christian  social  reformer,  128 
Young,  Sir  William  Mackworth, 


his  testimony  to  value  of  mis- 
sionary service,  72 

Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion, foreign  mission  work  of 
the,  40,  156;  enthusiasm  of, 
in  missionary  service,  201, 
202 

Young  People's  Missionary 
Movement,  mission  study 
classes  and  conventions  of, 
42 

Young  Women's  Christian  As- 
sociation, foreign  mission 
work  of  the,  40,  41,  201, 
202 

ZlEGENBALG,      BARTHOLOMEW, 

his  entrance  into  India,  31 ; 
bi-centenary  celebration  of 
his  landing  in  India,  62 


By  JAMES  S.  DENNIS,  D.  D. 

The  New  Horoscope  of  Missions 

12mo,  cloth,  $1.00  net. 

Lectures  delivered  at  McCormick  Theological 
Seminary  on  the  Converse  Missionary  Founda- 
tion. Prepared  for  book  form  they  will  be  rec- 
ognized as  a  valuable  addition  to  the  literature 
on  missions,  of  which  the  author  has  already  con- 
tributed several  volumes. 

Christian  Missions  and 
Social  Progress 

A  Sociological  Study  of  Foreign  Mis- 
sions. 3  vols.,  with  over  200  full-page 
illustrations.  Each  vol.  8vo,  cloth, 
gilt  top. 

Now  Complete.  Vol.  I— 4th  edition,  2.50 ;  Vol. 
II— 2d  edition,  2.50;  Vol.  Ill,  2.50  net. 
General  Table  of  Contents,  Vol.  I.,  The 
Sociological  Scope  of  Christian  Missions.  The 
Social  Evils  of  the  Non-Christian  World.  In- 
effectual Remedies,  and  the  Causes  of  their 
Failure.  Christianity  the  Social  Hope  of  the 
Nations.  Vol.  II,  The  Dawn  of  a  Sociological 
Era  in  Missions.  The  Contribution  of  Christian 
Missions  to  Social  Progress.  Vol.  III.  The 
Contribution  of  Christian  Missions  to  Social 
Progress. 

Centennial  Survey  of 
Foreign  Missions 

A  Statistical  Supplement  to  Christian 
Missions  and  Social  Progress,  being  a 
Conspectus  of  Achievements  and  Re- 
sults at  the  Close  of  the  Nineteenth 
Century.  Maps,  illustrations.  4.00  net. 

Foreign  Missions  after  a  Century 

Eighth  Edition.     8vo,  cloth   -    -  1.50 


ENCYCLOPEDIC 


Christian  Missions  and  Social  Progress 

JAMES  S.  DENNIS,  D.D. 

Three  vols.,  fully  illustrated,  8vo,  Cloth:  Vol.  I.,  $2.50; 
Vol.  II.,  $2.50;  Vol.  III.,  $2.50  net. 

General  Table  of  Contents,  Vol.  I.,  The  Sociological 
Scope  of  Christian  Missions.  The  Social  Evils  of  the  Non- 
Christian  World.  Ineffectual  Remedies,  and  the  Causes  of 
their  Failure.  Christianity  the  Social  Hope  of  the  Nations. 
Vol.  II.,  The  Dawn  of  a  Sociological  Era  in  Missions.  The 
Contributions  of  Christian  Missions  to  Social  Progress.  'Vol. 
III.,  Contribution  of  Christian  Missions  to  Social  Progress. 

The  completion  of  this  third  volume  gives  the  student 
a  full  view  of  Christian  Missions  in  what  is  agreed  by  every 
writer  to  be  the  most  thorough  study  of  the  subject  ever  writ- 
ten. ''A  great  advantage  of  the  book  over  most  others  is  its 
catholicity  of  spirit.  There  is  nothing  'denominational'  about 
the  study.  Everything  that  is  done  for  the  cause  of  Christ 
in  non-Christian  lands,  by  whatever  church  or  set,  is  its 
theme." — The  Churchman. 

Centennial  Survey  of  Foreign  Missions 

JAMES  5.  DENNIS,  D.D. 

Illustrated,  Maps,  Oblong,  Cloth,  $4.00  net. 

A  Statistical  Supplement  to  Christian  Missions  and  Social 
Progress,  being  a  Conspectus  of  Achievements  and  Results  at 
the  Close  of  the  Nineteenth  Century.  A  panoramic  presen- 
tation. Educational  institutions;  Bible  translations;  Mission 
presses  and  periodical  literature;  orphanages,  asylums,  rescue 
and  reformatory  institutions;  associations  for  general  improve- 
ment; native  organizations  for  reform;  missionary  organiza- 
tions, missionary  steamers,  etc.;  closing  with  a  full  directory 
of  the  foreign  Missionary   Societies  of  the  world. 

Mohammedan  World  of  Today 

Edited  by  JAMES  L.  BARTON,  D.D,,  S.  T\.  ZWEMER, 
D.D.,  E.  M.  WHERRY,  D.D. 

Illustrated,  Maps,  8vo,  Cloth,  $1.50  net. 

A  symposium  on  the  present  conditions  and  outlook  of 
Mohammedanism  from  the  point  of  view  and  from  the  experi- 
ence of  Christian  Missionaries  at  the  centers  of  Mohammedan 
influence  in  Asia,  Africa,  Malaysia.  The  book  is  cyclopedic 
in  its  information  concerning  this  greatest  of  rivals  of  the 
Christian  religion — it  is  authoritative,  comprehensive  and 
completely  up-to-date. 

Missions  and  Politics  in  Asia 

i2mo,  Cloth,  $1.00.  ROBERT  E.  SPEER 

Studies  of  the  spirit  of  the  Eastern  peoples,  the  present 
making  of  history  in  Asia,  and  the  part  therein  of  Christian 
Missions.     Students'  Lectures  on   Mission'    Princeton,   1898. 


HISTORICAL 


The  Missionary  Expansion  Since  the 
Reformation 

J.  A.  GRAHAM,  11.  A. 

Illustrated,  Colored  Maps,   i2mo,  Cloth,  $1.25. 

Mr.  Graham  is  a  missionary  of  the  Scotch  Young  Men's 
Guild  in  India,  and  his  book  is  written  especially  for  those 
whom  he  represents.  It  is,  however,  of  wide  value,  and  "a 
good  text-book  for  the  general  study  of  Missions." — Mission- 
ary Review  of  the  World. 

Nineteen  Centuries  of  Missions 

MRS.  WILLIAM  W.  SCUDDER 

Map,  i6mo,  Cloth,  50c  net. 

"A  Handbook  primarily  prepared  for  Young  People." 
"An  unique  and  comprehensive  handbook  covering  the  en- 
tire field  of  missions  from  the  first  to  the  close  of  the  nine- 
teenth century.  It  furnishes  just  the  information  needed  in 
the  Sunday-school  and  Young  People's  Societies. — Christian 
Intelligencer. 

Studies  in  Early  Church  History 

HENRY  T\  SELL,  D.D. 

i2mo,  Paper,  25c  net;  Cloth,  50c  net. 

In  seven  earlier  volumes  all  the  important  epochs  of  Bible 
times,  life  character  and  doctrine  have  been  formulated  for 
class  or  individual  study.  This  present  volume  treats  of  the 
early  and  founding  times  of  the   Christian   Church. 

Foreign  Missions  After  a  Century 

8vo,  Cloth,  $1.50.  JAnES  S.  DENNIS,  D.D. 

'A  careful  review  of  the  work,  not  only  in  its  results  but 
in  the  principles  and  spirit  which  animate  it.  It  gives  an 
insight  also  into  the  origin  and  development  of  the  heathen- 
ism in  its  different  manifestations." — Presbyterian. 

Primer  of  Medical  Missions 

i6mo,  Paper,  20c  net.  JOHN  LOWE,  F.  R.  C.  5.  W. 

A  Manual  by  the  well-known  Secretary  of  the  Edin- 
burgh   Medical   Mission    Society. 

Centennial  Statistics 

JAnES  S.  DENNIS,  D.D. 

Paper,   10c  net;  25  copies,  $2.00  net;   50  copies,  $3-50  net; 
100  copies,  $6.00  net. 

The  statistics  presented  at  the  Ecumenical  Conference  on 
Foreign  Missions,  held  in  New  York  City,  May,  1900. 


HISTORICAL 


Outline  of  a  History  of  Protestant  Mis- 
sions,   From  the  Reformation  to  the  Present  Time. 

QUSTAV  WARNECK 

Portrait,  Maps,  8vo,  Cloth,  New  Revised  Ed.,  $2.80  net. 

Authorized  translation  from  the  8th  German  Edition, 
edited  by  George  Robson,  D.D.  Part  I.,  Missionary  Life  at 
Home,  describes  the  effect  of  the  Reformation,  the  ages  of 
orthodoxy  and  pietism,  leading  up  to  the  present  age  of 
Missions,  and  the  organization  of  Missionary  Societies,  with 
an  Appendix  on  Roman  Catholic  Missions.  Part  II.  takes 
up  the  different  Continents,  showing  the  development  of  Mis- 
sions in  each,  and  closes  with  a  survey  of  mission  methods 
and  the  results  of  missions.  It  is  indispensable  to  every  stu- 
dent of  missions. 

Missions  and  Modern  History 

ROBERT  E.  SPEER 

2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $4.00  net. 

A  study  of  the  bearing  on  Christian  Missions  of  some 
great  events  of  the  nineteenth  century;  e.  g.,  The  Tai-ping 
Rebellion,  Babism,  The  Armenian  Massacres,  The  Boxer  Up- 
rising, etc.  "Such  subjects  as  the  emancipation,  both  political 
and  religious,  of  Latin  America,  the  development  of  Africa, 
the  transformation  of  Japan,  the  coming  of  the  Slav,  closely 
concern  us.  The  connection  of  missions,  antecedent  or  conse- 
quent, with  such  movements  is  reviewed  by  Mr.  Speer  in  a 
luminous  and   instructive   way." — The   Outlook. 

The  Growth  of  the  Kingdom  of  God 

SIDNEY  L.  GULICK 

Diagrams,  i2mo,  Cloth,  $1.50. 

Originally  an  address  to  a  group  of  wide-awake  Japanese 
students,  it  was  enlarged  in  book  form  for  a  Japanese  audi- 
ence and  again  enlarged  for  English-speaking  Christians, 
that  they  might  realize  with  the  missionary  the  steady,  un- 
failing, overwhelming  power  of  the  Kingdom  of  God;  realize 
too,  that  it  comes  slowly,  slowly  at  least  compared  with  the 
feverish  haste  of  some  in  these  days. 

Apostolic  and  Modern  Missions 

CHALMERS  MARTIN,  A  n. 

i2mo,   Cloth,  $1.00. 

Students'  Lectures  on  Missions,  Princeton,  1895. 

"The  eight  chapters  of  this  book  treat  of  the  principles, 
the  problem,  the  methods  and  the  results  of  apostolic  missions. 

The  book  is  full  of  inspiring  facts,  and  will  encourage  the 

thoughtful  reader  to  take  a  hopeful  view  of  the  progress  'of 
the  greatest  work  in  the  world.  " — The  Church  at  Home  and 
Abroad. 


ENCYCLOPEDIC 


Our  Moslem  Sisters  J  a  symposium. 

Edited  bvi  S*  M-  ZWEMER,  P.  R.  G.  S. 
caitea  by }  and  ANNIE  VAN  sommer 

Illustrated,  i2tno,  Cloth,  $1.25  net. 

A  mass  of  most  thrilling  testimony  as  to  the  conditions  of 
women  in  Moslem  lands.  The  degradation  of  woman,  her 
hopelessness  for  this  life  and  the  future  are  set  forth  very 
clearly  and  forcibly.  3 

The  Missionary  and  His  Critics 

i2mo,  Cloth,  $1.00  net.  .-_  JAMES  L.  BARTON,  D.D. 

In  ten  chapters,  Dr.  Barton,  out  of  experience  on  the 
field  and  as  Secretary  of  the  American  Board,  takes  up  the 
various  forms  of  criticism,  current  against  missionaries  and 
their  work.  In  general  and  conclusive  fashion  he  replies, 
and  supports  his  opinions  by  the  most  complete  array  of 
testimonies  from  non-missionaries  ever  gathered  in  one  vol- 
ume. Kings,  statesmen,  foreign  and  native,  scientists,  of- 
ficials of  every  type  contribute  their  acknowledgments  to  the 
value  of  the  work  and  the  character  of  the  workers.  Inci- 
dentally a  good  many  queries  that  arise  in  the  minds  of 
friends  of  missions  are  also  answered,  and  there  is  a  vast 
amount   of   useful    general   information. 

Strategic  Points  in  the  World's  Conquest 

Map,   i2mo,   Cloth,   $1.00.  JOHN  R.  MOTT 

The  story  of  a  world  tour  among  the  Universities  and 
Colleges  of  Europe,  Asia,  and  Australasia,  with  special  refer- 
ence to  their  relation  to  Christian  Progress,  and  in  the  in- 
terest of  the  Worlds'  Student  Federation.  With  introductory 
letters  from  the  Earl  of  Aberdeen,  Mr.  Gladstone,  ex-Presi- 
dent  Harrison,  Count  Bernstorff  and  Prince   Oscar  Bernadott. 

Medical  Missions :  Their  Place  and  Power 

lamo,  Cloth,  $1.50.  JOHN  LOWE,  F.  R.  C.  S.  E. 

Medical  Missions  have  become  so  thoroughly  a  part  of 
modern  missionary  enterprise  that  they  are  rather  taken  as 
a  matter  of  course,  one  result  being  that  few  realize  just  the 
place  they  hold  or  the  power  they  exert.  To  all,  it  will  prove 
"An  earnest,  intelligent  and  weighty  plea." — Public  Opinion.    • 

Medical  Missions  :  Teaching  and  Healing 

LOUISE  C.  PURINGTON,  M.  D. 

i6mo,  Paper,  10c.  net.  c-     ' 

This  booklet  has  been  prepared  as  a  companion  study  to 
"Via  Christi"  and  "Lux  Christi"  and  in  response  to  a  demand 
for  a  brief,  comprehensive  outline  of  Medical  Missions. 


PRINCIPLES  OF  MISSIONS 


The  Foreign  Missionary 

i2mo,  Cloth,  $1.50  net.  ARTHUR  J«  BROWN,  D.D. 

Very  nearly  nineteen  thousand  Protestant  Missionaries 
are  now  engaged  in  foreign  lands.  An  enterprise  so  vast 
challenges  attention.  In  this  volume  Dr.  Brown,  out  of  a 
long  and  intimate  experience  deals  with  such  questions  as, 
Who  is  the  Missionary?  What  are  his  motives,  aims  and 
methods?  His  dealings  with  proud  and  ancient  peoples.  His 
relation  to  his  own  and  other  governments.  His  real  diffi- 
culties. Do  results  justify  the  expenditures?  How  are  the 
Mission  Boards  conducted?  etc.,  etc.  The  book  is  most  in- 
telligently  informing. 

Missionary  Principles  and  Practice 

8vo,  Cloth,  $1.50  net  ROBERT  E.  SPEER 

A  Discussion  of  Christian  Missions  and  some  Criticisms 
upon  them.  Part  I.,  General  Principles  stated^  Aim  of  Mis- 
sions, Science  of  Missions,  Need  of  Non-Christian  World; 
Christianity  the  Sufficient  Religion.  Part  II.,  General  Prin- 
ciple Applied,  especially  as  illustrated  in  China.  Part  III., 
Need  and  Results;  instances  from  Author's  visits  to  China, 
Persia,  etc.  Part  IV.,  Privilege  and  Duty,  Resources  of  the 
Church,  etc. 

The  Holy  Spirit  in  Missions 

i2mo,  Cloth,  $1.25.  A.  J.  GORDON,  D.D. 

"Throughout  the  Spirit  of  God  is  honored  and  exalted, 
and  if  this  book  does  not  call  attention  to  the  one  sovereign 
remedy  for  all  failures,  both  in  our  methods  and  motives,  our 
work  and  our  spirit,  we  know  not  where  such  remedy  is  to 
be  found." — The  Missionary  Review  of  the  World. 

Method  in  Soul  Winning,  °n  Homf  ££ Foreign 

iamo,  Cloth,  75c  net.  HENRY  C.  MABIE,  D.D. 

"Dr.  Mabie  shows  clearly  that  all  one  man  can  do  for  an- 
other is  to  put  him  on  the  clue  and  that  thereafter  each  soul 
as  thus  started  is  sure  to  find  God  disclosing  himself.  The 
most  telling  feature  of  the  book  is  the  number  of  striking  and 
authentic  illustrations  which  Dr.  Mabie  adduces  from  his  ex- 
perience gained  in  work  all  around  the  globe.  He  writes  as 
clearly  as  a  lawyer  presenting  a  brief." — The  Standard. 

"Do  Not  Say" 

J.  HEYWOOD  HORSBUROH,  M.  A. 

i2mo,  Paper,  10c  net 

The  Church's  Excuse  for  Neglecting  the  Heathen. 

Now 

,2mo,  Paper,  10c.  HENRY  C.  HABIE,  D.D. 

The  Missionary  Watchword  for  each  Generation,  or  the 
Principle  of  Immediacy  in  Missionary  Work. 


PRINCIPLES  OF  MISSIONS 


Universal  Clements  of  the  Christian  Re- 
ligion 

CHARLES  CUTHBERT  HALL,  D.D. 

l2mo,  Cloth,  $1.25  net. 

-'  Dr.  Hall  delivered  the  course  of  Barrow's  Lectures  on 
the  Haskell  Foundation  in  India,  1902-3,  the  general  topic 
being  the  "Relations  of  Christianity  to  other  Religions," 
the  specific  topic.  "Christian  Belief  Interpreted  by  Christian 
Experience."  Out  of  the  study  of  the  topic  and  the  experi- 
ence of  the  lectures,  Dr.  Hall  developed  the  series  of  lec- 
tures given  at  Vanderbilt  University,  under  this  title.  The 
interest  and  enthusiasm  aroused  by  them  have  been  remark- 
able. /'An  absolutely  new  conception  of  the  world  position  of 
Christianity  that  makes  as  distinct  an  advance  in  its  way  as 
was  marked  in  the  psychological  realm  by  Prof.  Wm.  James' 
'Varieties  of  Religious  Experiences.'  Its  conclusions  are 
startling,  but  convincing  and  optimistic  and  marked  by  a  sim- 
plicity and  confidence." — N.  Y.  Observer. 

The  Meaning  and  Message  of  the  Cross 

HENRY  Co  MABIE 

i2mo,  Cloth,   $1.25   net. 

To  show  how  all  men,  whether  they  realize  it  or  not,  live 
under  the  protecting  power  of  the  Cross  of  Christ;  to  enforce 
the  lesson  of  the  mutual  relationship  of  nations;  and  to  pre- 
sent this  fundamental  basis  for  the  missionary  enterprise,  as 
the  appeal  to  Christendom  to  work  together  with  God;  this 
is  the  purpose  of  the  well-known  missionary  leader. 

Missions  from  the  Modern  View 

ROBERT  Ac  HUME,  D  D. 

i2mo,   Cloth,   $1.25   net. 

"A  statesmanlike  view  of  the  conditions  confronting  the 
advance  of  Christianity  in  the  East.  The  author  sees  both 
sides  of  his  subject  from  East  and  West  viewpoints,  with 
great  clearness.  Sensible,  clear,  business-like,  he  points  out 
the  changing  and  recrystallizing  conditions  that  Christian  mis- 
sions must  meet  and  the  necessary  readjustment  of  mission- 
ary methods.  "We  believe  that  both  in  his  theological  em- 
phasis and  in  his  outlining  of  practical  policies,  Dr.  Hume 
has  set  forth  the  program  of  missions  which  will  more  and 
more  be  followed  in  coming  years  all  over  the  globe. — "Con' 
gregationalist. 


The  Attraction  of  the  Cross 

JOHN  ANGELL  JAMES 

Long,  i8mo,  Cloth,  30c. 

A  sermon  by  '  .e  noted  preacher,  delivered  early  in  the 
nineteenth  century,  reprinted  because  of  its  pertinency.  In- 
troduction by  Rev.  Cornelius  Woelfkin, 


Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  01089  4634 


Date  Due 


